


Wanderess

by Forever_Hopeless



Series: Nephilim Series [2]
Category: Marvel Cinematic Universe, Supernatural, The Mortal Instruments Series - Cassandra Clare, Vampire Academy Series - Richelle Mead
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Downworlders, F/F, F/M, Gen, Infinity Wars Fix-It, M/M, Not Avengers: Infinity War Part 1 (Movie) Compliant, Shadowhunters - Freeform, Spoilers, Supernatural Spoilers
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-10-18
Updated: 2018-10-18
Packaged: 2019-08-04 00:36:27
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 21
Words: 49,006
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16336394
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Forever_Hopeless/pseuds/Forever_Hopeless
Summary: A/N: Erik and Charles look like their younger selves because... fuck it.





	1. 0

_ Kirstin smiles at the uncle's banter, watching the married couple go back and forth on names for their sons or daughters. They were keeping the genders a surprise, for some reason that they never really explained. She thinks it's because it pisses Dean off. He wants to know if they are boys or girls so he knows what to get them, but they won't budge. “Sarah?” Tony offers. _

_ “Maria?” Steve shoots back as he moves around the desk. They were supposed to be filling out paperwork for her statement about Hydra, but she had asked them what they were naming her cousin. So technically this was her fault. _

_ “Aria.” _

_ “Edith.” _

_ “What the hell? I am not naming our kid Edith. James or Jamie?” _

_ “Maybe for a middle name?” She pauses for a second listening to their argument. Well, it still wasn't an argument. There was no heat behind anything they said, mostly pure curiosity and maybe some hopefulness. _

_ “Sentimentality is an amazing reason to name a kid. Mary? Maybe Wyatt?” Tony had told his niece he was hoping for a girl because he already had some experience due to raising the two girls alongside his brothers since Kirstin was nine. _

_ “How about Amelia?” The black haired girl offers quietly. “For a girl.” _

_ That seems to cause both men to freeze, turning to look at the girl with mirrored looks of concern, “I… I uh, just remember that you don't like talking about her, so I figured that name was out of the question and-” _

_ “Amelia Jamie Stark has a nice ring to it. Maybe James Bobby Rogers? Hunter James Rogers? James Hunter Stark? Jamie Virginia Rogers?” _

_ “Leo,” Tony says so suddenly, it causes Kirstin to jump. _

_ “Leonard. Leo for short. Leonard James Rogers. Amelia Jamie Stark. Those sound wonderful. Two more and we're good, in case it is two girls or two boys.” Steve agrees softly, nearly drowned out by the sound of Kirstin's phone ringing. _

_ She quickly pulls it out of the pocket of the old shorts she dug out of her room this morning, “Hello, Kirstin Black here. Make it snappy, I'm probably late for something.” She always answered the phone that way, never actually checking the caller ID when she picks up, so this gives her an excuse to hang up and not seem like a  _ total  _ bitch. _

_ “Kirstin. We have a problem.” Clary's voice rings through the phone. I instantly stand up, putting the phone on speaker and cutting of the couple's conversation. _

_ “What kind of problem?” _

_ “Ryder's been kidnapped.” _

_ # _

_ Two Months later… _

_ “I mean, we're doing everything we can, and I know Ryder is doing the same. He's not stupid, but he's not-” Kirstin begins, talking into her phone, only for it to be yanked away from her by an angry blonde Shadowhunter. _

_ Jace ends the call, throwing the phone on the table next to him, and taking a step into the younger girl's personal space, “Don't talk as if you know him. You may think you know him, but you don't. You know this stupid illusion he paints for girls like you.” _

_ She raises her eyebrow mockingly, not letting him pick up on the pang of guilt in her chest. “Yeah? And what illusion is that?” _

_ “Mundane. Someone who hunters with those stupid tricks you brutes are taught. He's not a mundane, and he sure as hell isn't a Hunter. The faster you learn this, the better. To you, he's the mundane you knew in high school. In reality, he's so much more. You don't know anything about him.” He turns to leave, his anger and guilt that is coursing through his veins officially reaching a new height. He makes it to the doorway of the room when the girl finally seems to find her voice, causing him to freeze in his place. _

_ “His favorite food is Ravioli. Not the homemade kind, or the fancy kind from the expensive restaurants, but simply canned ravioli. It has to be Chef Boyardee or he won't eat it. I know that he loves to play any sport, except golf and frisbee, he doesn't think those count as sports. He'd dance with me if I asked, but would never have the balls to do it in front of crowds, especially because he'd think I would ditch him. His nose twitches when he concentrates. He loves all type of art but prefers either drawing or sculpting, though he hasn't sculpted since that place by the Tower closed. He never wanted to ask for the supplies to do it, so he just gave up. Ryder has never been able to keep up with me in my mechanics and engineering, hell even hacking, but tried to learn what he could so he could keep up a decent conversation, especially because I was so eager to talk about it. He goes out of his way to try and make someone upset smile but is not afraid to put someone in their place. I know he went up against Lucifer when his powers were just beginning to manifest and did one hell of a job. So maybe you're right, maybe I do only know him as a mundane. Or maybe, just maybe, I know him better than anyone else because I've gotten to know the human side first. I know I've got more to learn, but I'll be damned if I let you take your self-hatred and guilt out on me. It's nobody's fault except Hydra’s and Sebastian's. The faster you realize that the better.” Kirstin grabs her phone off the table, turning the opposite direction and exiting that way, not once looking back at the man she was talking to. _

Kirstin's P.O.V.- Ten Months later...

I quickly take out one of the criminals, running back toward the real issue, dropping to the concrete when Spidey nearly smashes into me, missing by seconds, “Sorry!”

I ignore his voice in my comm, dashing forward to help the evacuation of a building with a bomb in it. There were four different buildings, all of the apartments that could put a dent in the population. I talk to the comm in my ear, watching as Iron Man, Falcon, Spiderman, and Vision get people out of the blast zone, the rest either helping evacuate people, or stopping the group that had placed the bombs in the first place. “How much time until we're all a crater?”

“Three minutes. The other three buildings are clear of people, but the blast could knock out at least a block each, and the fourth won't be evacuated in enough time.” Captain America's voice response.

“What if I teleport the bomb into one of the other building?” I offer, quickly taking out another criminal, hitting him repetitively with his own gun.

“That would help, but there's still the blast zone problem and-”

“I've got this, Cap. Keep evacuating people, getting as many out of the blast zone in case something goes south.” I sprint toward the building teleporting into the floor with the bomb mid-sprint. I keep running, barely sliding to a stop as I grab both sides of the case it is being held in and appearing in the other building.

In another quick move, I'm in the middle of the street again, the bombs in the buildings. I bite my lip softly, “You are positive there are no civilians inside?”

“We've scanned every building, with our own eyes and thermal scanners, there are no heat signatures other than the bombs. Thirty seconds, Wanderess. Whatever you're planning, you better do it now.” Iron Man calls out. I nod, concentration on the illusion I wanted.  _ Just because it's fake, doesn't mean you can walk through it. It's almost like a force field. _

I watch as the golden film-like power coats the buildings quickly, sealing all three of them in from ceiling to the foundation. I don't have to see the thing I'm altering to make it look different, as long as I can imagine it. I had it coat over the basements and three feet under it, sealing it in a box-like illusion that will hold in the blasts, my eyes shining gold.  _ Ten, nine, eight, seven, six, five, four, three, two. Please work, please work, please work! _

I feel the explosion happen between the boxes, bouncing off the walls of them. It knocks me on my ass, though it appears to have no effect anywhere else. I hold the walls, cutting off any air that can fuel fires and any after effects that could affect the buildings surrounding those ones. “It worked!” Falcon exclaims, shock evident in his voice.

“Don't sound so surprised, Falcon. It's offensive that you think she wasn't capable of containing the blasts. Don't worry, Kid. I'll defend your honor.” Tony jokes as he lands next to me. I wasn't listening, lost in thought as I rethink what I did and finish dealing with the criminals around us.

_I_ _should've covered the bombs themselves. I destroyed people's home and memories_. I think doubtfully. Grabbing the gun before they could shoot me, my attention split in three different directions; my fighting, my thoughts, and my illusions.

#

By the time I was able to let the illusion drop, I had gotten all the terrorists loaded into police trucks and headed to jail, I'd come up with seven different ways I could have saved the buildings, excluding the facts that I didn't know which floors those two were on and didn't have the time to find out, and had been shot three different times.

“Ouch,” I mutter quietly, Bruce making no move to show he heard me as he works on pulling the bullet out of my abdomen, having to cut me open to get it out. Leaving bullets in my skin didn't really injure me, my angelic DNA made quick work of disposing of them, but it still took about two weeks to completely dissolve and felt weird in my skin. Usually, it's one of the medics downstairs who do it for the others, but I refuse to go anywhere near medics, often pulling bullets out of my own skin with telekinesis. Besides, they are busy helping Sam, whose wing got shot off. He crashed into a car and needed glass removed and some stitches. They were also helping Peter, who had also gotten shot and was having the same issue I was, except his body didn't decompose the bullets on its own.

“You know, this wouldn't be as hard if you would go see the medics. You know, people who know what they are doing.” Bruce replies easily, more of a snide comment than a heated remark.

“Yes, but they'd make me sit in their basement hospital, and probably try to give me morphine or some shit. I'd rather do it myself, but apparently yanking them out of my skin with telepathy is not a good method to use. Which I don't get, sure it  _ is  _ painful but effective and a lot faster.” I grip the edge of the desk as he pulls the bullet out of the hole he had cut and had held open with some creepy looking medical tool.

He drops it into a metal bowl with a _ting_ , easily removing said medical device to let my healing do the rest, “If it's painful, why do you willingly do it?” **Kirstin.** _I'm busy Mase._ **Yeah, I get that. Except we are supposed to be leaving for dinner five minutes ago.** _Shit_. **I'm finishing up with Sam right now, meet me on the ground floor when you're done.**

Bruce goes to carefully feel around my abdomen when I don't respond to his question, “Any more bullets you can feel?”

“Uh… no. Thanks, Bruce. I would love to stay and chat, I actually would love to, but I'm supposed to be meeting Mason about five minutes ago and I still need to change. We will have to just hang out later.” I smile, trying not to look super uncomfortable in my skin. I grab the shirt and jacket of my suit, cursing silently at the holes in them as I quickly move to the lift.

“Well… Bye!” Bruce calls out after me, the lift doors closing mid-yell. I check to make sure no one is there, feeling a twinge in my mind as when I look to the left, dropping the suit shirt on the floor and dragging my hand away from my side. I focus on the uncomfortable feeling in my collarbone, eyes beginning to glow as I work the bullet out from the bone it sunk into. Letting out a strangled cry, the bullet moves forward quickly, shooting out of my skin at half the speed it shot in at. I feel the bone easily fix, holding back another cry as it aligns itself, my eyes watering.

After I make sure the hole healed, I carefully pluck the bullet out of the air, spinning the bloody thing carefully, “Hi Wanda.”

“Why tell Bruce he got all the bullets out if he missed one?” She muses, letting herself be known, her accent thick.

“Why feel your presence and still remove the bullet? I'm in a hurry, and the bullet was lodged in my collarbone. They act as though I'm fragile; it is easier to just remove them myself. You really need to stop with the mind fuckery, by the way. It doesn't do anything to me. I can still sense your presence, as previously stated, and I can feel you use it on me, it's like someone flicked my brain from the inside.” She laughs softly.

“That paints a beautiful image, Kirstin. You are fragile, are you not? You feel pain, just like the others. You get injured, even if you heal. Speaking of healing, your friend is an excellent addition to the team, I'm glad he's joined us.” I turn to look at her, holding back a smile.

“Mason isn't a part if the team, he works in the Med Bay. There's a difference. Aren't you just as fragile, Ms. Maximoff?” Though we often go rounds with our words, teasing and prodding each other's limits, there has never been any animosity between Wanda and I, especially after she began to make up for everything that happened with Ultron. She was clearly mentally unstable then, and the deal was she would get help. Of course, I can often feel the guilt coming off of her in waves whenever her actions are brought up; whether it be Ultron or Sokovia.

“That is a quite debatable topic, Ms. Black.” My smile eventually breaks through, earning another laugh out of the Sokovian woman.

“So I've heard. Has anybody decides what they're doing with the other four infinity stones? It's been nearly two years, and you guys still haven't come to an agreement. I know Vision’s wasn't destroyed, the time stone was given to Dr. Strange, and the others are locked away for the time being, but do you have anything more permanent?”

“Well, a few of us think destroying it is the best idea, others find that they think keeping them as a last resort are good ideas, while everybody else just wants us to agree on something that's safe for the world. I honestly believe destroying them is for the best, but at the same time, destroying them takes a lot of power.” The doors open while she speaks revealing a Mason, who was holding some clothes for me. I check the bond, feeling the drain from healing Sam weighing him down. I easily pull the darkness into me, earning a hard hit to the shoulder.

“You're not supposed to do that. You're gonna drive yourself insane!” Mason all-but yells, looking at me as though I just kicked an innocent puppy.

“Quit looking at me like I kicked your dog. Give me my shirt.” I grab the fabric, holding up a large Ac Dc tee shirt. “Or maybe your shirt? This thing is huge.”

“It's Dean's, he-” Mason begins, watching Wanda’s suit adorned figure behind me

“Ah, say no more. Just give me the jeans, I'll be in the bathroom for maybe a few minutes, then we can go home and listen to Rose scold us for being late.” He laughs, tossing me my jeans easily as I move through the hallway toward the nearest bathroom. Maybe clean up the blood too, while you're at it. You look like you robbed a blood bank and used it for body paint.

I flip him off, my hand in the air as I leave, earning a large laugh out of my best friend.


	2. 1

“Are you sure he's ready for an assignment of this magnitude? It's only been a year. We need more time to study his-” A scientistic rushes out, only to be cut off by a guard.

“We don't have any more time. I gave you a year to make him what we need. Will he be useful, or should I find another programmer for the job?” David Roberts snaps harshly pulling the scientist close to him, grabbing the front of his shirt.

“He will! He will be useful. I just need another week to make sure the programming is embedded deep enough. We don't need another incident like the first Asset. Or the ones after him.” The scientist rushes out.

“You have three days to finish up, then he's on his first mission. If you take any longer than necessary, the rookies are going to be cleaning your blood off of the floor, do I make myself clear?”

“But sir,-”

Roberts pulls him close again, the anger clear in his voice and on his face as spit flies out of his mouth, “Do. I. Make. Myself. Clear?”

The other visibly swallows, staring into the leader's eyes, mouth suddenly dry, “Crystal.”

“Roberts, you really should not rush him. One wrong move and our asset here becomes nothing but a useless zombie with pudding for brains.” Sebastian mutters quietly, running his fingers through the Asset’s strawberry blond hair, lips pursed together.

Roberts lets the scientist go watching as he scrambles to get back to work, “If he doesn't do it faster, Asset 7 will not be ready in time. We need him to get the others, and we need the audio sent a day beforehand, we want them off their games. You may be running this operation, but I am in charge of everyone here. You do not tell me what to do.”

“You do not tell  _ me _ what to do. I still have the power my mother Lilith has given me. I can hurt you far more than you can hurt me.” The blonde's eyes flick to black, causing the soldier next to him to flinch away. “ _ I  _ am in charge here and you are merely controlling the people below you, while I control  _ you. _ ” The soldier nods carefully, not wanting to look into the pitch black eyes in front of him.

“Yes, Sir.” The dirty blonde soldier mutters gruffly, his eye twitching slightly. He had finally made it to the top, only to be controlled by a demonic  _ freak _ . Karma sucks ass.

“Good. Now, come along. We need to make sure this plan is perfect.” He pauses, letting his hand run down Asset 7’s cheek, smiling softly at the boy. He leans down, whispering softly in her ear, though he knows he can't hear him at the moment. He's put under for the time being, “You're nearly ready. You'll see her soon enough.”

#

He dreams of a girl he doesn’t know, of a place he can’t remember. They’re smiling and laughing, sharing drinks and dancing in the middle of what looks like a cafe. It is almost as if he’s been here before, done this. But he doesn’t remember where this is, who she is. Nor does he understand why he keeps on referring to him with a name he does not recognize. There are others there; meaningless faces with laughter and voices he feels he should recognize.

He doesn’t, of course. This is not the first memory he’s seen while under, certainly not. He’s seen many, though if you ask him about them, he couldn’t tell you one thing. He sees them in his sleep, feels like he’s looking at a puzzle with missing pieces and doesn’t have the box to know what it is supposed to look like, and when he wakes up, they are gone. He won’t remember the raven-haired beauty when he wakes, or the weird assortment of drinks on a coffee table. Nor the cafe with the people around him who laugh, and touch him while they do so, who tell jokes with him and at his expense, who act as they know him. It isn’t fair, not at all, but neither is the world.

After all, if the world was fair, he’d remember himself as something other than Asset 7.


	3. 2

Kirstin's P. O. V.- Present Day

I walk under the lights of the city, Mason close behind me. We had just had dinner with his parents, which is awkward considering Dimitri doesn't know he's gay and we had to come up with another reason why we aren't dating that's believable. While everything around us is loud, neither one of us is talking, Mason thinking about the work he has to get done at the Compound and I opt for silence as I mull over some things in my head.

“You're eventually going to tell him,” I state softly as we slide into a taxi Mason had hailed.

“You know the answer to that.” He doesn't look at me while he speaks, looking straight ahead.

“You want him to get to know you first. You don't know how he'd react.” I don't ask a question, I can find out the answer with a simple skim through his thoughts. I know the answer to the questions, and that's what I'm stating, wanting him to hear his own thoughts out loud.

“Yes. This is like… if you finally got the chance to met your mom, and you had to tell her you aren't… what she expected. What society expects.” I watch as he clears his throat lightly, his normal happy facade gone. I'd never needed the link to see through the persona, but I'm happy that he trusts me enough to let me see when he's not happy, even though I can feel it.

“Well… I think that you should tell him now. Not right now, obviously we're in a Cab. But sooner rather than later. Because this Mason, the one that he thinks he's getting to know? That's not you. Even when you still act exactly the same, gay or straight. Holding a part of yourself back means that even though you never act differently due to your sexuality, means he isn't knowing the  _ real  _ you.” I turn in my seat, facing the man next to me.

“You're right. I  _ know _ you are right. But it's terrifying, okay? I mean Mom actually raised me and she told me she knew before I told her. He is basically a stranger to me. What am I supposed to do? Just walk up and say,  _ ‘Hey, I know you only found out I was your son a few months ago, I'm gay, do you wanna get a pizza for dinner?’” _

I laugh despite myself, thinking for a second, “Did you know that Avery literally walked into the room, announce she was gay and then ran out before she could hear my uncles’ responses?”

That earns a laugh out of the brunette, “Really? Avery ‘I’m going to make out with Andi in front of paparazzi’ Winchester did that?”

“Yeah. She was nervous, when she gets nervous she does things without thinking them through. If she had, she probably would have stuck around and heard the amazing things they told her so much earlier. And that wasn’t the point of the story, Mase.”

“I know, I know,” he chuckles a little bit more before his face turns serious, “You’re telling me to take a leap of faith. I get it, I hear you, I feel you, and I’ll think about it. Now that we’ve faced down my issues, let’s talk about yours.” I feign innocence leaning over to pay the cabbie before stepping onto the road that leads to the Compound.

Mason follows suit, running his hand through his short hair after he steps out, “How about the fact that you lied when my Mom asked about the Darkness? Or the fact that your boyfriend has been missing for a year? Maybe that you still won’t talk to anybody about any of this? I mean, Jesus Kirstin! That’s a lot to hold in, even for you. You were mentally unstable long before I met you, and you’re just getting worse, not to mention the Darkness poisoning you even more. You need to talk to someone, someone who can’t feel your emotions. You need an outside perspective.” He links arms with me, even though the words he was saying were important enough that most people would want to say them to your face. He doesn’t do that. He doesn’t need to look me in the eyes for me to understand why he’s saying what he is; I can already tell clear as day.

“What, like a shrink?” I scoff, keeping my anger out of my voice and letting it sink into him, “And tell them what? ‘ _ I’ve seen my uncles die more times than I could count, my grandfather abandoned me in a hotel room so he could go hunt monsters and ended up dying? The Avenger’s left me after a huge Civil War within their ranks, but they're back now so I act like I’m okay? I killed a grape-looking lunatic that killed my uncles? I killed my uncle and my father, who technically wasn’t my father? That I died on another Earth and my best friend brought me back to life and now he heals the Avengers after missions and I stop him from going insane by driving myself insane instead? That I just got a boyfriend, who I loved with all of my heart, only for him to be kidnapped the next day by his psychotic uncle, who was dead and came back because I was brought back to life?’  _ I say any of that to someone I’m locked up. Whether it be a jail cell or a padded room, I’m toast.” My rant comes to an end as I reach the front door, ignoring the others in the foyer as I march swiftly to the lift, Mason hot on my heels.

We both stay silent while we wait for the lift to come down, speaking in our minds again. I told you that I could handle the Darkness on my own.  _ You think I would  _ ever  _ let you do something like that to yourself?  _ Yes! It’s called self-preservation, Kirstin! Look it up!  _ I know what self-preservation is, Asshole. I’m not like that. I’m not- _ I cut my own thoughts off as the lift opens, revealing the smiling couple that is Avery and Andi. “Hey, guys. How was dinner?”

I pull a fake smile on, easily hiding my anger and sadness, “Amazing. Rose made lasagna.” I look over at Mason.  _ Say something. _

He easily falls back into the happy persona he plays so well, though his smile definitely doesn’t look like his real one, sadly this is the one he uses more often than not. “Yeah. The dinner went great. In fact, Mom told us that she plans on visiting the Royal Court when Dimitri has to go back for his job. He got time off from Christian, but it won’t last forever, so they want to spend as much time as possible with me before they head back. Which means I need to wrap up the work I have in the Med Bay so I can hang out with them tomorrow. Bye.” He presses the button watching the door close in front of the two girls who were laughing at his antics.

“Wow, you close the lift doors in their face, you’re funny. I do it and I’m just being a bitch.” I state hollowly, feeling the lift begin to go down.

“It’s all about the context, Mack. Now, back to the topic at hand.” He turns to face me, the smile dropping from his face.

“I don’t need help, Ryder and I weren’t together that long, and I won’t let you deal with the Darkness on your own,” I state firmly staring into his eyes as I shove the self-doubt as far out of his reach and attempt to project self-assurance.  _ I got this. I’m fine. You won’t go insane, and I’ll still do what I do best. _

He runs a hand through his hair again, gripping it slightly as he stares at me, thinking for a moment.  _ No. Stop that train of thought now.  _ “Talk to Sam then.”

“Sam helps  _ soldiers _ who have PTSD, Mason. I’m not a soldier, nor do I have PTSD. There is no reason for me to talk to him. Piss off, I’m going to go train.” I all but shove him out of the lift when the doors open to reveal the Med Bay, button mashing the close door button before he could try and talk to me. I cut off the bond, not letting him through to talk there either, staring at the doors in front of me in an attempt to regather my thoughts. The lift starts to move again, though I didn’t press any buttons. “FRI? What are you doing?”

“Mr. Stark requests your presence down in the lab. I am taking you down now.” I tense up glancing over at the camera in the corner of the elevator, “I can assure you, it has nothing to do with your’s and Mr. Belikov’s previous conversation.”

“Well, maybe a little bit of a warning next time?” I offer, looking up at the ceiling.

“Ms. Black. I informed you three different times before I took over control of the elevator. Did you not hear me?” I chew on my cheek, debating how I should respond. It’s weird having to watch what you say in front of an unembodied voice from the ceiling, but everybody has been watching me closely since Ryder was taken and I really don’t want them to catch onto… well, anything I’m thinking about. I don’t want to talk about my problems to people who clearly have better things to do. I can handle it on my own. They probably wouldn’t care anyway.

The doors open to reveal Tony working on Sam’s wings, Wanda perched on one of the many desks in Tony’s lab. He has a lot of surfaces to place stuff on, just because he never actually keeps his lab organized. I’m honestly amazed Wanda was even able to sit on one of them, they are usually covered in stuff.  _ Bruce must’ve been down here recently. _

“Kirstin, good. FRIDAY told me you were back.” Tony states knowingly, turning away from Falcon’s wings.

“Don’t tell me you need my help with Feathers’ wings. You've fixed them more times than I can count. Are you losing your touch?”  _ Smile and wave, boys, smile and wave. _ I snort at my own thought, smiling as I sit in Tony’s desk chair.

“No. That’s not why I called you down here and I’m quite offended you would even think that. How old do you think I am?” He mockingly puts his hand on his chest I smile on his face though his claim on being upset.

“I don’t know, maybe a hundred?” I shoot back, propping my legs on the edge of the desk so as not to hit his latest project.  _ Projects. _

“I think you’ve mistaken me for my husband, my darling niece. I am nowhere near as old as him.” Wanda clears her throat, giving Tony a look, “Right. Yeah, so I didn’t call you down here to work on the wings with me, but I do want to talk to you about some training ideas.”

I quickly hop out of the chair, “I am  _ not  _ trying to use Mason’s powers through the bond, we talked about this!”

“No. I know. Sadly, you’ve proven to stand strong on that idea, so Wanda and I have been working together to come up with another one, except we need more data, Bruce is helping too, but he needed to set up some equipment in his lab for this to work.” I look between the two of them, cautiously taking a step forward.

“I’m intrigued and concerned at the same time. What type of data do you need?” Watching the two hesitantly, I stay close to the elevator. Sometimes Tony’s ideas are extremely terrifying, so bolting has crossed my mind on more than one occasion.

“We want to study your brain when you use your powers, and someone’s brain when you use the powers on them.” He explains simply, looking over at the younger woman standing next to him, “And then we’re going to do the same to Wanda, see if your powers work in the same way. If they do, Wanda can teach you how to use your powers, or technically you’d be teaching each other.” I mull over the idea for a second. It seems like it would work, but I have so many different things I can do with my powers…

“Okay, but-” Tony let’s out something close to a cheer.  _ I wonder if he’s drunk. _

“There's always a but.” He mutters quietly to Wanda, earning a slight giggle out of her. They had become closer in her efforts to right her wrongs, often helping Tony in the lab when the others are busy.

“I do different things at different times, I can’t go through every single power in a night.” I finish, shooting a glare at my uncle.

“No, you can’t. Which is why this is the perfect way to work on your skills. _ It takes time.  _ We were already working with Wanda and Jack, so we do know somethings, but we want to see if your brain reacts differently to your powers than theirs due to their powers.” Tony quickly picks up a file, moving toward the elevator. “Come on, we have to do this in Bruce’s lab.” I groan, debating hitting my head on the desk. Or the wall. Maybe the elevator doors. All I know is that it’s going to be a long night.

  
  
  



	4. 3

Kirstin’s P.O.V.- The Next Day…

I groan, purposefully hitting my head on the desk, flipping Jack off as he laughs at me. “I’m supposed to be punching the shit out of a punching bag right now, not listening to you guys let your nerd flag fly,” I mutter jokingly, talking to the closed file under my head as Tony and Bruce get the file together. We tested a few abilities last night, enough to prove that nearly all of Jack and my’s reaction to the powers are the same. While the next part of Jack’s testing required blood samples, mine required blood samples  _ and _ more brain testing, which sucked. Though, Wilson was also one of the guinea pigs, and that made me feel better.

Since Wilson and Andi are two of the only normal humans, (at least by DNA and ability standards) they got stuck being the one we tested. This was due to Tony’s disbelief that Natasha was completely human, and that she was with Sam and Dean on a hunt, Steve and Bucky having the serum altering their blood, Thor being a non-human being, Rhodes being busy, Wanda being Wanda, Avery hating needles, and Pepper out-right refusing to come near the lab while they were running tests on Jack and I. She didn’t think it was right the way they were testing us like this, though we gave our complete consent to do this, and can back out at any time.

“We analyzed Sam’s blood before, after, and during the hallucinating state you put him in.” Bruce begins, only to be interrupted by me. I’m really good at interrupting.

“Okay, can I ask what we’re calling these? Because I’ve heard illusion and hallucination and those are two different things. Both of which I can do.” Sam snorts as I hit my head against the desk again.

“You’re gonna give yourself brain damage.” He points out, putting his hand between the desk and my forehead as I move to do it again.

I push his hand away, leaning back in the chair I was sitting in, “I couldn’t if I tried. Healing factor, remember? One time, I cut off my hands to get out of handcuffs and reattached the hands to the stumps.”

“That imagery will live on in all of my nightmares.” Tony mutters quietly, turning back to the results FRIDAY had pulled up moments ago. “Anywho, I feel the need to point out that during the… what are we calling these things? I mean, honestly, we can’t keep referring to them as two different mind fuckery abilities, because for her they are one in the same.”

“Mind fuckery?” Wilson questions, looking between the people behind the desks. “That’s the best name you could come up with?”

“I came up with that, Feathers. Problem?” I send the most convincing glare I could muster in my state of mind. I want to go curl up in the giant ass bed Tony bought me and over analyse Mason and I’s conversation until I pass out, but instead I’m here with these guys trying to figure out powers I long-since gave up trying to figure out.

“Nope. Carry on.” He concedes, leaning back in his chair. His clothes made it evident that he had either gone on his morning run before he got here, or was planning on it after we’re done here. The first one is more probable.

“During the time you were sending Wilson to Loony Town,” I flip him off while he speaks, earning a collective chuckle around the room, “his mind and his blood work seem to point towards him being on a hallucinogen. You’re basically a walking, talking drug.”

“Wow… I’m the literal definition of the quote ‘My parents warned me about drugs in the streets, but never ones with blue eyes and a heartbeat.’” I laugh at the bored look Tony sent my way.

“I thought it was brown eyes?” Andi questions softly, half asleep next to Sam, head leaned on the back of her chair, looking at the ceiling.

“I thought it was green.” Jack adds, a statement instead of the previous question.

“It’s probably all of the above. It’s been said so many times I doubt there isn’t an eye color that hasn't been used.” I give the two scientist a gesture to keep going.

“And Jack seemed to momentarily alter Andi’s DNA while using his powers on her, which makes me curious why we didn’t pick it up in his original blood tests. His blood, while during the testing, showed more unidentifiable alters to his blood. As in, we can’t establish what these alters are, but they are clearly present. It faded afterward, along with the Nephilim abilities she was given. I want to set you two up for another test; seeing what powers you give others when you let them use your powers.” Bruce pauses for a second, looking through my test results for a second. “As for Kirstin, when you...”

“Sent Wilson to Loony Town?” Tony offers, straight faced and everything.

“I am not saying that, Tony. It makes this sound like a joke, and this is serious. When you used your powers on Sam-”

“When she sent Wilson to Loony Town.” Jack cuts in, a smile of his face.

“I should’ve never taught you how to be a smart ass. I knew I was going to regret it.” I cut into the talking trio quickly, hitting Jack on the arm while Banner continues talking.

“-his brain showed signs of being on a for of hallucinogenic drug, because it altered certain functions of the brain; his vision and his mood. I wonder if you could develop your powers into what Wanda can do.”

“You mean mind control.” I say slowly, looking over as everybody around the room tenses.

“More or less, yeah. You could also probably access memories and alter what people know and remember. You could affect people's emotions too, if you tried.” Bruce states, seemingly in wonderment of the possibilities while he continues to examine the results of Sam and I’s tests.

“Now all we got to do is keep you away from egomaniacs who want to take over the world.” Tony snarks, “Easy.”

Sam spins in his chair, turning to face the billionaire, who had moved on to fiddling with his newest projects already, “Keep her away from them! We should be letting letting her loose on them, assuming she can do the things Bruce is suggesting. She could probably bring them to their knees like she did Than-”

I abruptly stand up, facing Tony. I attempt to keep my posture and body language natural, even as the images of the fight run through my head, “Doesn’t Steve’s shield need to be repainted, and beaten back into shape?” He had gotten the weapon dinged up pretty bad in the last mission; it had gotten lodged into a car while he was fighting a gunman. When he pulled it out, it had taken on more of an oval shape than its previous circular one.

Tony eyes me warily looking between the group of people and me. He quickly shakes off whatever he was thinking. “Yeah. Steve’s room, tell him I sent you. If he needs more proof, which I highly doubt he will, he can ask FRIDAY. You copy, FRI?”

“I will relay the message if asked, Sir.” Her voice rings out while I maneuver myself around Jack and Andi, getting in the lift and shooting Tony a quick thumbs up. An odd look appears on his face as the doors close. I let out a sigh, sinking to the ground, hearing the voice repetitive in my ear.  _ It had to be done, Little One. _

I press my face into my knee harshly, willing the memories away, willing the voice to shut up. It sounded so real, like he was standing right next to me.  _ It had to be done. I am only trying to save the world from himself.  _ I close my eyes, getting more focused, trying to get the voice to stop. This worked with Amelia, pushing the energy away until there was nothing to push away. She always came back of course, I couldn’t hold her off forever, her energy was getting more rampant, anger fueling her fire. She had long since vanished; apparently, she had been attached to the copy of the Blackthorn ring that Sebastian had taken from me, but the key to keeping her away for as long as possible seem to be imprinted in my head.

The only problem with this, is there was no energy to grab. There was no spirit connection left over, no loved one he could be attached to. This is all in my head, and it sucked. It meant that Mason was probably right, I needed help. Either that, or the Darkness was building up faster than I thought.

I lean my head against the back wall of the lift, the mad titan’s voice echoing in my head all the while. I fucking hate Spirit.

  
  
  



	5. 4

Kirstin’s P.O.V.- Present Day

I sit back in my chair, smiling in triumph at the freshly painted, circular symbol in front of me. Completely flat, save for six dents in the metal that I knew needed the be left alone. It wasn’t something I was told, more of an unspoken rule between all the people who have fixed the shield.

I hear the slight giggle of a baby girl, and the gurgling sound of her brother, before I see any of the four people that enter the Void, turning to face the family when they finally make it to the doorway. I roll my eyes at Tony, who was holding his little girl in his arms, letting the eight-month-old tug on his goatee, giggling loud when he groans in pain, “Look at this! My daughter is already laughing at my discomfort, and she’s not even a teenager yet. This goes to show that you, my little Spawn, are spending too much time with your cousins.”

“Yeah, it has nothing to do with the fact that babies have odd obsessions with facial hair, and has nothing to do with liking the idea of your discomfort. Though, Clary told me babies can often sense feelings like apprehension, discomfort, and stress.” I begin to clean up my workspace, putting the paints away.

Artemis Amelia Stark-Rogers and Apollo James Stark-Rogers, (Apparently, Tony saw an opening to be a complete Greek mythology nerd: hence the names) the twin children of Tony and Steve, were eight months old and hellions, at least in my opinion. Not in the sense that they need to be held all the time, or that they scream a lot, more on the fact that they are so hyper and independent at the same time. They had just learned to crawl, making watching them a lot harder of a task, considering the Compound is not always super safe. We have baby gates up in nearly every room, keeping the dangerous ones off limits twenty-four seven, “Nothing to do with that at all, it’s all your fault.”

I pause, turning to roll my eyes in an over-exaggerated fashion, “I’ll be sure to keep that in mind when it’s my night to cook.” I mimic a spitting motion grabbing the shield carefully, setting it on a high shelf. “Give it a day or two to dry, then you can have it back. I had to buy special paint for that, you better be happy.”

“I would thank you, but I’m nearly positive you took on the work so you don’t have to talk to anybody,” Steve replies easily setting his son down and moving toward me.

I turn carefully, moving to lock up the paint cabinet and set the Polaroid camera on top of it, “I have no idea what you are talking about.”

“Mhm,” Steve states simply, laughing slightly at Apollo. He was pressing his face against the window, attempting to look down at the ground, giggling like a maniac. Artemis was behind him, valiantly trying to climb onto the rather tall couch.

“Okay, as stimulating as this conversation is, it is not why we are here. I wanted to let you know that I made a phone call to a friendish… to an acquaintance. He agreed to help train you to the best of his abilities, involving your magic. Clint is also coming back into town, actually, he and his family are going to be moving in since the farm has been compromised by government idiots.” Tony explains, eyes focused on the two children rather than me, which was basically how any conversation with them in the room went. He was freakishly focused on making sure everything about their time spent together, and their childhood is perfect. He had begun to stop doing it as much, understanding that he can’t control everything that is going to happen, but it still happened often.

I sharp pain pulses through my head during the time it takes for me to process everything Tony had said. My balance falters slightly, the pulse growing stronger. I grip the table harshly, a slight grunt leaving my lips as I force myself back into a standing position, shaking my head slightly. Bad idea, that made it worse. I speak quickly, trying my best to sound normal, but my voice sounded particularly gruff, cracking slightly mid-sentence, “Okay. I’m gonna go to my room, when am I supposed to meet him.”

Tony quickly assesses me, probably due to my drastic change in tone, from playful and slightly defensive, to guttural and harsh, “Um… tomorrow, at six o’clock in the morning. He’s coming here. Are you okay?”

I shake my head again, clenching my hand into a fist, gripping the edge of my loose Ac Dc shirt, “Yeah. I just… really bad headache. I’m just gonna lay down. I’ll be down on the ground level at five thirty. See you later.” I hurriedly move around Tony, exiting the room. I pause for a second, debating the fastest route to my room.  _ If I take the elevator, I could run into people. The stairs would take too long and the private elevator is on the other side of the building… Fuck it.  _ I close my eyes, snapping them open a second later to see my door in front of my face. I had set up runes to keep people from teleporting into my room, which sadly includes myself.

I fling open the doors, quickly moving to climb into the large bed, burying my face in the pillow, the pain getting more intense. A deafening shriek is in my ear now, growing louder by the second. I grab my pillow next to me, pulling it over my head. It grew louder, even louder until finally, I gave up hiding how I felt, the pain too much to bear. Screaming at the top of my lungs, the lights in my room, which FRIDAY is set to turn on as soon as any one of us enters our rooms, burst, submerging me in complete darkness.

The screeching continues growing louder, earning quite a few more screams out of my mouth, until everything goes silent, a familiar voice filling my head.  _ Ms. Black, I need to meet with you, it is very important. Meet me at the gate.  _ Then everything stops the door in front of me flying open to reveal an extremely worried quartet. Sam, Bucky, and Wanda all stand in my doorway prepared to attack, Bruce seems to be in the middle of stopping them. I flinch as the light fills my room, showing the damage I created during my tantrum. My desk was completely demolished, seems to have collapsed in on itself. My dresser… let’s just say Avery finally gets her way; I’m going to need some new clothes.

Bruce was the first one to move, appearing next to me somehow, grabbing my shoulders carefully, seemingly to hold me up staring directly into my eyes, “You okay?”

I blink sluggishly, attempting to let my brain catch up with him, the words coming out like I was underwater. I mouth was extremely dry, and my throat hurt immensely. My voice is hoarse when I reply, staring at the wall across from me, “I… Yeah. Sorry, one of them was trying to contact me. It kinda hurt a little.”

The wall in front of me was perfectly fine, no breaks in it at all. Actually, none of them did, even though there were weapons and little knick-knacks scattered across the room that had clearly been thrown during my lash out. I sent Bruce a questioning look, already starting to feel better. Bruce followed my line of sight, sighing softly, “Tony thought it would be better to have the walls reinforced. And the floors. And the ceilings. The building is Hulk proof, and…”

“Kirstin proof. Yeah, I got that. Might ask him to order some new furniture though, definitely install new lights... We need to make  _ that  _ Kirstin proof. Saves money and trouble.” I joke awkwardly, attempting to pull away from Bruce, who instead pulls me into a rather uncomfortable hug. I mean, I got used to people hugging me for some reason or another, but it doesn’t make the feeling any less uncomfortable and foreign. John never really hugged me or showed any affection at all, and Bobby showed affection by playing with me (I one time made him fight as the Barbie Avery gave me while I fought as Captain America. I clearly one, I always thought Captain America won back then.) and he would take me nearly anywhere I wanted to go; tried to give me a semblance of a normal childhood- even though John had pretty much ruined that from the get-go. Sam and Dean would usually just kiss my forehead, maybe pull me into their side in what Avery label the ‘bro hug’, due to a not so good experience when I was a kid. Sam tried to hug me once, after a year of me traveling with them, and I completely freaked out, thinking he was a shifter that was going to hurt me; why else would he try to pull me that close? Easy opening to take me out; snapping my neck, stabbing me, putting a gun to my side, he could do so many things to harm me if they got that close. After that incident, they never really got up the nerve to hug me again, until I was well into my teenage years, and by then, it was just completely uncomfortable and brought up bad memories. Like how John never hugged me, or the time I was all but tackled by a vampire who tried to drink my blood. Or the werewolf. Or the ghoul. Monsters had a habit of mauling me.

I pull back, easily moving away from the hug. Bruce stands up, moving to explain what happened to the other three; whether it be the truth or some bullshit story, I have no idea. I stare at the closet door, which was also untouched, debating my options for a second.  _ I should probably take someone with me. I don’t want jack anywhere near them, so that rules him out. No regular human can walk through the gates, it would kill them instantly.  _ I look at the four who still reside in the doorway.  _ Sam, no. Bucky, no. Wanda, probably not, but maybe. Tony and Steve are a no. Bruce would probably go green. Peter, no. Wade… Oh my god, Wade.  _ I stand up, quickly pulling a pair of shoes out of my closet, pulling them onto my socked feet. Bruce spins around quickly, probably hearing me open the closet door, grabbing a hoodie off the ground and a leather jacket from a hanger. “What are you doing?”

I turn to face the scientist, chewing on the inside of my cheek for a second.  _ Do I lie?  _ “I’m going out. I’ll text Tony what I need, see if he can order some furniture. Right now I need fresh air, and a talk with an idiot that doesn’t require using my brain.”  _ Okay, not a complete lie, conversations with Wade don’t usually require much thinking. And fresh air definitely wouldn’t hurt. _

“I can tell Tony, but I think it would be a good idea if you just-” I quickly move around Bruce, smiling at the other three who all shared the same worried look like the scientist. I pull the zip-up hoodie on, followed by the leather jacket.

“You’d tell Tony? Awesome, one less thing I gotta do. Thanks for checking on me, I’m clearly alive, no one hurt me and all that YOLO stuff. Tell Avery I’m borrowing her sunglasses.” I close the lift before any of them could respond, letting out a sigh.

After a quick stop on Avery’s floor grabbing the aforementioned sunglasses, I stop in the garage, moving to the trunk of one of Tony’s many sports cars, easily opening it and pulling out my box. I pull the blonde wig out of that, pulling my actual hair up and clipping the wig into my hair so it stays in place. I learned to start wearing wigs or other ‘disguises’ out in public to assure I don’t end up mobbed by paparazzi wanting to know about the Avengers. Or the company. Or anything I or my family does, excluding Sam and Dean.

I close everything back up and move to one of the motorcycles Tony owns, snatching the keys off the wall. I climb on, securing the helmet making sure the hood is tucked underneath it, over my head, effectively hiding the blonde hair.  _ The ‘disguise’ doesn’t work if they see you leave in it.  _ Now the fun part.


	6. 5

“Russell, I swear to shit I'm going to drown you in the pool if you do not stop setting things on fire,” Wade yells when there's a knock on the door. “Oh, the cocaine's here.” He grabs a gun, opening the door to reveal a blonde in sunglasses. She was wearing a leather jacket and an Ac Dc t-shirt with combat boots.

“Hello.” She pretends to have a British accent, “I was told you sell chimichangas and butt sex. I would prefer the former, but I know quite a few people who would be interested in the latter. You interested, Big Boy?” The woman places her hand on his chest.  _ Chimichangas… _ he thinks for a second.

“We don't have a pool, Asshole.” Russell snaps, joining the two in the room.

The mercenary spins to the teenager behind him, “Then I'll drown you in the bathtub, you little shit! Stop setting things on fire.”

The teenager turns from him, moving to examine the blonde, “Who are you?”

“Someone who likes to give adult men prostate examines, care to join.” That broke Wade. He spun around, laughing almost maniacally.

“Marry me, Kirstin. I will tell Captain Switzerland to suck my nut and we'll move to Las Vegas. I'll steal all Iron Maiden’s money and we'll be set for life.” He pulls her into him like he's trying to woo her.

Kirstin steps back, proceeding to walk into the room and sit on the couch. “ _ Or.  _ We could run away to a playground a few states over.” Wade didn't look impressed moving to put his gun away, his adopted son staring at her, as if he's trying to figure her out. “Maybe to Heaven?”

That definitely got Wade’s attention, “I thought you said humans couldn't get into heaven.”

She pauses for a second, thinking it over, “I'm nearly positive I said, normal human. You aren't very normal, are you?”

Wade stares at the fake blonde for a moment, “You think my healing will stop me from going splat.”

“Going splat? Heaven? Have you finally gone insane?” Russell questions, looking between the bald man and the blonde.

“Yes. Bonkers, actually, slipping further away from reality every day. Won't be able to come back soon.” Kirstin answers honestly, her mind flickering from Amelia to Thanos, to the figures of Peter's mom and stepdad she saw the other day. “Are you interested to have a fun road trip with me while I'm still somewhat sane? If you do go splat and don't grow back, your friend Russell has a place he can fall back on.”

The teenager in question looks between the two again, before sighing. He had given up trying to understand the conversation; for all, he knew they could be talking about skydiving from a plane named Heaven. What  _ did _ catch his attention was the fact that the woman assumes she knows anything about him. “I don't have anything to fall back on, Psycho Blonde Bitch number three, and would prefer it if you actually talked to me.”

She simply turned, pulled he sunglasses down carefully and looked him over. She snorted under her breath, easily talking to him, “Cute shirt kid. I think my uncle has the same one. Really loving the haircut too, makes you look older than fifteen. You'll have the Avengers to fall back on, I have a contact on the inside.”

“Don't lie to the poor kid,” Wade states exaggeratedly, turning to look at the confused boy, “That shirt is hideous, the haircut sucks and she is the contact on the inside. Go pack a bag, we're going on a road trip to heaven.”

“You're such a douchebag, dude. Verbal abuse is still a form of abuse, Wade. Don't listen to Freddy Krueger, he’s just mad he doesn't have hair to cut and style. And I'm sorry, but you can't get into Heaven kid, not till you're dead, anyway.” She adds a joke into the very real anger she felt at what he had said. Wade didn't want to push the subject, knowing quite a few things from her past that added up pretty well to why she was pissed.

“Yeah, yeah. Blades or guns?” He asks instead, motioning for the youngest in the room to go pack.

“Neither, I'll give you weapons to use when we get there. Angel blade metal, adamas, and vibranium. Perfect mixture for an amazing weapon that can kick angel ass. Don't kill them unless absolutely necessary please, or-”

“-The world will be plagued with ghosts and probably destroyed, yeah, yeah. Why are we going in the first place?”

“I just don't want all of Heaven on my ass. I fixed the ghost problem. Anywho, I got a message today, asking to meet at the gates of Heaven. It was from a friendly angel, who owes me big time. I killed Lucifer, alternate Earth Michael, and created the batteries that power heaven. I need backup, just in case, things go south. I won't let Jack within ten feet of an angel, let alone into Heaven. Everybody else would die. That leaves you, by process of elimination.” He pauses for a second, seeing the actual fear in her features.

“You've actually gone nuts this time, haven't you?” He doesn't look at her when he speaks, packing his clothes into a duffel bag.

She stares at his back, “Honest answer?”

“Always, Rich Kid.”

“Yeah. There's no coming back for me, not without someone I love getting hurt in the process. I'm on the ledge now, it's a matter of time before I fall head first. There's nothing I can do. Pills don't work on me, I can't die. I'm trapped inside my body with a mind that's turning against me. And I can't tell anyone, because I don't want them to worry, and I can't talk to Mason because he'll let it happen to himself and I refuse to let such a bright light go out, Wade. I want to go have fun, go do something before I'm… before I'm not  _ me  _ anymore. But I can't, because I have responsibilities. Because I want to spend as much time with them as I can and do the right thing,  _ and  _ live like I won't have a tomorrow. And I know you don't do serious conversations, and I'm sorry for dumping this on you, but I'm stuck, and you're my only friend who can crack a joke about this. Blow me away.” There were tears watering in her eyes when he finally looks back at her, a fake smile that could light up a room even if it is fake. It's like comparing a light bulb to the sun, really.

He looks her over for a moment, closing the drawer he had grabbed the last of his clothes out of, “At least you're going out in a hot bod. I mean, I would pay to look even close to what you do, so there is that. And, you know, you could blame liking to piss of Captain Canada on your insanity. I… You should tell them. Even I told Vanessa I had Cancer before doing something stupid. Tell them. Everything they need to know, maybe leaving out that I gave you this advice. I have a reputation to uphold you know.” He zips his bag, throwing it at her.

“A pansexual, feminist, merc with a mouth, that doesn't do serious and totally wants to bang Colossus.” She snatches the bag, laughing when he goes face first into the other side of the couch. He wiggles around until he was sitting right next to her, a smirk on his face.

“Into sheet metal. I mean, who wouldn't? That Russian accent is hot. Plus, he's got to be  _ hung. _ ”

“Wade!” She yelps, eyes wide.

He chuckles at her expression, continuing on his rant, “Look how tall and thick he is! He'd fucking destroy me.”

“Stop talking, you sex addicted freak show, I don't want to know about your Metal-man man crush you've got going on, okay? It's gross.”

“Because he's a dude?”

“Because I'm barely eighteen, and you're well into your thirties, maybe forties and we're talking about a friend of your’s dick.”

“Mhm, his probably huge, definitely metal, dick.” She hits him really hard in the shoulder.

“Wade!” He wiggles his ‘eyebrows’ at her, a simple smirk on his face.

He began to say something else when the phone went off. She grabs it, letting out a string of curses, “There's a robbery in progress in Queens. Spidey and I are being called out. See you later, Hater.”

“Tomorrow?” He calls out after her retreating form.

“Tomorrow night, I have a meeting tomorrow because my uncle hates me. I hate people.” He hums along, not bothering with any other response.

After a few minutes, he lets out a string of cuss words, “Damn, I still have to wait for the cocaine.”


	7. 6

Kirstin moves quickly, teleporting to the base and putting her suit on before appearing to the bank. There were a group of criminals inside, six at the least, probably more in the back. She lets out a heavy breath, debating which approach would be better.  _ Probably the civilian approach.  _ She closes her eyes, focusing herself on what she wants to look like.  _ Redhead, brown eyes. Civilian clothing. Unintimidating. _

She walks out from behind a pillar, easily catching the criminals attention. “Hey! Get down on the ground!” She licks her lips, examining the guns.  _ Handgun. This type only holds eight bullets each, every person has two.  _ She scans the crowd of civilians who are on the ground, being patted down by some of the gloved robbers.  _ Twenty-three people at least, no chances of survival if the guns aren’t taken out first. Can’t use any disabling techniques, too many people at risk, too many criminals with the guns. Take the guns out, clear an easy escape route.  _ “Hello! Ginger, I’m talking to you! Down on the ground or I’ll shoot you.”

Kirstin sinks to her knees in front of her, carefully examining her.  _ Bulletproof vest under the outfit.  _ The woman’s hand shakes as she points the gun at the younger girl.  _ Nerves or nerve damage?  _ She focuses in on the woman herself, watching her green eyes through the clown mask on her face.  _ Nerves. Probably a newbie, mediocre fighting skills.  _ The teenager jerks her leg out, knocking the girl's feet out from under her, sending the other people’s guns up onto the ceiling. She roles over the girl’s arm, grabbing the gun out of her hand as she rolls, shooting at the assailants and pressing her leg against her throat, cutting off her air supply.

Going for non-lethal but effective damage, she shoots the first guy in the knees, another in the foot and the thigh, and the last she just shot him in the junk.  _ That should hold him over for a while. _ She then shoots the unconscious girl whose arm and throat she was crushing in the knees, just to make sure. Moves to shoot another advancing robber, the gun clicks, out of bullets.  _ Shit, only seven bullets, she must’ve used one before I got here. _

The illusion drops in her momentary panic, revealing the newest vigilante as her true identity. Throwing the gun, she ducks out of the way of a punch, catching the extended arm and using it to flip to her feet, pushing off the ground. She kicks him in the face in the process, and uses the momentum of her movements with the awkward angle she twisted his arm at, with an added bonus of her super strength, to snap his arm. Crying out in pain, he moves to kick her between the legs.

She catches his foot mid kick, releasing his newly broken arm in the process. She sends him a mock unimpressed look, “Wow, criminals just don’t fight fair anymore do they?”

Her hand tightens its hold on the man’s foot, hearing multiple cracks ring out with her heightened hearing. The man’s voice is full of pain as he speaks, “You just shot my friend in the balls, you’re one to talk about fighting fair.”

She shrugs, smiling dully at the sound of his pain, no actual emotions portrayed. She didn’t know why she was smiling, usually she would cringe at the sound, having heard it from her family members one too many times; now though, she was almost numb, her reactions seeming to be from another person entirely, “Yeah, well, you're criminals, fair fights aren’t required from people like me and people like you. Have fun in jail.” The gun comes flying to her hand while she speaks, so she bashes it against his head multiple times, watching as the blood begins to well over.

Dropping him like a rag doll, she moves to some of the others. She punches one in the face, only for him to be flung back and stuck to a wall, web design a dead give away, “Sorry I’m late, I was in the middle of helping Claire lookup lore.” Peter’s voice states, his heavy breathing heard over the comms.

Kirstin spartan kick another girl, and he shoots webs to trap her hands behind their heads, “You should ask her out already. I think she’d be down for a date with the infamous Spider Boy.”

“You’re such a jerk. I’m gonna make sure there’s no one in the back, you got them.” He questions, referring to the three guys who were seemingly debating their fates. They were glancing between the cop-riddled outside, and the girl.

“I got this, piss off Spider Boy.” He mumbles something to Karen, moving to the back of the building. She pauses, smirking and flipping her hair over her shoulder, “So. Do you wanna walk out of here with your dignity and new flashy wrist ornaments? Or would you like to get your ass kicked by a rookie?”

Both of the clown-masked faces cocks to the side, a feminine one responding with about as much sass as she could, “I choose option three.” A man behind her pulls an empty duffel around the throat, tightening it as much as physically possible, picking her up off of her feet. She lashes out with her powers, sending the two flying backward. FRIDAY’s voice rings through her ears, claiming that backup is on its way.  _ ETA five minutes. _

Wanderess tugs at the strap, trying to find a way out of this that doesn’t involve her passing out because that is not something she needs right now. Her feet slide along his legs as she attempts to find traction or at least a good point of impact. She draws her leg back, twisting around to kick one of his knees, causing him to drop to the ground, dropping her along with him. The black haired girl lands on her feet, spinning and grabbing his head before kneeing him in the face.  _ Once. Twice. Three times. Four.  _ She pulls back, watching him fall to the ground, only to flip the girl from earlier over her back when she comes charging at the teen.

With all the adrenaline in her veins, plus the feeling of the Darkness seeping through her at the feeling of beating a living, breathing thing, she turns to the last guy with a wicked smirk. Everything around the man was beginning to blur, Kirstin’s own consciousness being nearly taken over by the Darkness that she’s been absorbing over the past year and a half. In her mind, she was just going to knock him around long enough for Spidey to web them, which she was hoping would be soon. In reality, Natasha and Bucky ended up having to pull the volatile girl off the unconscious and beaten to a pulp man, while Spidey and the criminal’s webbed friends watch.

She spun on them, kicking Natasha through the air and attempting to take Bucky down. While the assassin was strong and ruthless, the girl was twice the strength with half the body mass, making her faster. Most would say Kirstin had the advantage, except that Bucky had been trained for nearly three times her lifetime. This meant that even if she ends up tying with Steve everytime they spar, and learned tricks from every hunter she ever met, all of the Avengers except Bruce,  _ and  _ S.H.I.E.L.D. Agents Maria Hill, and Sharon Carter, it still barely even matched all he knew. That being said, she used her powers to force him onto the ground, only to be taken out by Natasha smashing her own bow staff against her head. Four times. Maybe five times. Just to be sure.

  
  



	8. 7

Mason stares into the Hulk-proof containment unit through a video camera, watching his unconscious best friend lying on the smooth floor. “She went completely volatile, Tony. What else was I supposed to do?” Natasha snaps at the older man. The whole team was here, debating how to handle Kirstin.   
  
“Talk to her? Throw her in the van? I don’t know, but you don’t beat your niece over the head six times with her own bo staff!” Tony snaps right back, quickly glancing over to make sure the children in the Playpen on the other side of the room are still asleep.   
  
“It was five times,” Bucky adds carefully, his eyes never leaving the young man. Wanda was also watching him, curiosity in her blue eyes. Stupid fucking Kirstin. Stupid fucking need to help people. Stupid fucking Spirit. Stupid fucking Darkness, driving her insane.   
  
“What is the Darkness that’s making her mad?” Wanda questions the brunette, causing the man in question to spin around and glare at the girl; who’s merely a few years older than him.   
  
“Stay out of my head, for one.” He snaps, anger boiling in his system. All of this was his fault. “The Darkness is a disease of the mind that’s created from Spirit. Spirit is what I use to heal people. It’s one of five elements Moroi can specialize in; the rarest one, actually. I’m not a Moroi, I don’t drink blood or anything. Just so you know. Anyway, uh… it’s basically a shit ton of powers jammed into one; compulsion, reading auras, dream walking, creating illusions, telekinesis, and mind-reading. Or at least, that’s what I’ve been told. I personally can only use compulsion, read auras, and heal people. Lissa Dragomir, another Spirit user, showed me how those things work, but I can’t do it, so don’t even ask me to.” He shoots a look at Sam, who was just about to ask him to demonstrate. “Anyway, Moroi pull their abilities from the Earth around them, while us Spirit users… we pull it from our own….” He was trying to find a word to explain it.   
  
“Soul?” Steve offers leaning against the wall closest to his kids.   
  
“Okay, cool. What does this have to do with Kirstin?” Tony demands irritably.   
  
Shooting him a glare, the dhampire continues speaking, “If you’d let me finish, you’d know. Yeah, we pull it from our own life force; and it drives us crazy and eventually kills us. The Darkness is, basically, what drives us insane. It forms after we use our powers; the size you use depending on the power you used, how much power you used, and for how long you used it. Healing small cuts is probably the least harmful thing, bringing someone back from death is easily one of the most.”   
  
It was Thor’s turn to interrupt him, “You can bring people back from the dead! Does this mean that-”   
  
“No.” Mason cuts off bluntly, “What’s dead is dead. Or I guess technically not, all things considered. But in this sense, Spirit-wise, dead is dead. I can’t bring someone who has been dead for months- hell, even hours- back to life. I- We can, however, bring people back from the brink of death. Essentially we’re slamming their souls back into their bodies before they complete finish crossing over. The people that are brought back are called Shadow-Kissed. They’ve crossed over to the other side and came back, making them susceptible to ghosts, especially if they were the one to kill them. When someone becomes Shadow-Kissed, a mental bond is formed between the Spirit user and the person, their Shadow-kissed partner if you will. Usually, the person who was brought back can read the Spirit user’s mind, emotions, and can even look through their eyes. If the person is brought back from the brink again by the same Spirit user the bond is broken. Also, if the user uses too much of their powers, the Darkness will spread to the bond-mate, or the bond-mate will pull the Darkness away from the user. That’s what happened here.”   
  
“You and Kirstin…” Tony begins, trailing off as his eyes move from the young man in front of him over to the video of the containment cell. Mason’s nerves were eating him up, not to mention the guilt. He knew Tony would burn down the world if it meant Kirstin was okay, and that made the boy wonder what was going to happen to him. Not that he didn’t think he deserved it.   
  
“She died over on the Apocalypse world. She talked Sam and Dean into not telling you and shut me up too. Kirstin can be pretty terrifying with a blade in her hand, doesn’t even have to be using it to scare me, and she knows it. This is her going insane, this is the Darkness. I told her I could handle it on my own, but she won’t listen. The second she feels the effect through the bond, she pulls it onto her, so trying to take it back proved to be useless.” Tony walks closer to him, an unidentifiable look on his face as he moves toward his niece's best friend, causing Mason’s back to go ramrod straight, even as he attempts to relax. Punches hurt more if you tense up, he knew that, so if Tony was going to hit him, he’d just take it and deal with the pain.   
  
What he wasn’t expecting was for Tony to pull him into a hug. An awkward, but a meaningful hug nonetheless. “Thank you. For keeping her self-destructive ass safe, for making sure she came back home.” Everybody else in the room seemed almost shocked that Tony did this. Everybody in the tower was super defensive over Kirstin, she was the youngest and it was a given they’d all want her to stay safe and have a somewhat normal childhood. While this was true, different ways the Avengers- maybe even the Winchesters and posse- protect her. They all would help her if she was attacked, but they each had their own protective instinct.   
  
Natasha and Clint were always adamant about her fighting for her self; Wanda hopping along on the bandwagon soon after she became an official Avenger. They wanted her to know how to protect herself against the real threats of this world, as a way to protect her from them. All of them have been knocked down by some awful experiences, and they want to make sure Kirstin knew how to protect herself so she won’t go through anything that they did.   
  
Bruce, Sam, Vision, and Steve seem to try hard to make sure that she’s emotionally okay; getting to know her friends to make sure they won’t hurt her, checking in on her constantly, and always being willing to talk was one of the many ways they’d protect her. Sam would focus on mental health in general, even though we all know Kirstin would lie through her teeth every time they spoke.   
  
Thor, Hulk, Tony, and Rhodes were the ones that would hurt anything that tried to hurt her. Tony had lost more than enough people he loved to ever want to do that again. They all knew she could hold her own, but they were always prepared to fight- or smash- anything and everything they can to keep her safe.   
  
That’s what made this so bizarre. Mason had majorly damaged Kirstin’s brain, caused her to go insane, and yet Tony was hugging him. Tony who threatened him the first time they met about hurting her, was hugging him.   
  
“I thought you’d be mad. I... I drove her insane, Tony. I hurt more than I helped, believe me.” He stutters out when Tony pulls back, moving back over to the monitors.   
  
He points at them while he speaks as if to emphasize his point, “This we can fix. We’ll get her help, get her on meds- very, very specialized meds- help her in every way we can. Her dying, we couldn’t have fixed that, no matter how powerful we are. You saved her, Crazy, in a way we couldn’t. Speaking of which, is there anything else we need to know about this bond?”   
  
Mason laughs softly for a moment, amused at the nickname, “I have a feeling that nicknames gonna stick. Uh… We have a two-way bond, meaning we can see through each other’s eyes, feel each other’s emotions and pain, and hear each other’s thoughts. We’ve actually gotten good at carrying on a conversation in our head and out loud. And uh, as stated before, I’m not a Moroi, so the Darkness affects me more. Moroi were built to use magic, Dhampir weren’t.”   
  
“Wait.” Bruce speaks up from across the room, “What are Moroi and dhampir exactly? You’ve mentioned them multiple times, but never really explained what they were.”   
  
“Mortal vampires, basically. They don’t live forever, they’re actually slightly more fragile than humans, paler too. They don’t kill their victims, and if they do they become Strigoi. I’ll explain what those are in a minute. Anyway, Moroi can go out in the sun, though it irritates them slightly. They have Royal courts and Academies and are basically cut off from the outside world when they go to the Academies. Most of them actually integrate within the ranks of humans easily, as long as they have feeders on hand. They have powers too. They specialize in one of the five; Water, Fire, Air, Earth, and Spirit. Spirit users can use all of the other elements, almost like they didn’t specialize.   
  
“Dhampirs are half-human, half-Moroi. They look and act, and eat like humans, and don’t possess the powers Moroi do. They are stronger, faster, and essentially just a better form of a human. Almost like a super soldier, but not quite as strong. They used to be born from humans and Moroi… uniting, if you will, but that’s considered taboo now. Or I think it’s still considered taboo, Adrian and Sydney Ivashkov make it work, but Adrian is already pretty high ranking on the taboo and rare meter already, considering he’s a Spirit user, so I don’t think anybody really expected anything different from him.   
  
“Anyway, it's usually a Dhampir and a Moroi having a brief love affair that they're born, in modern times. Dhampir are born to protect Moroi- or some other stuff my mom kind of brushed over really quickly when teaching me. I’m honestly not sure- and are often trained to do so at the… wait for it, Academies. They learn all the usual garbage, English, History, Math and such, but are also trained how to fight. Oh, and Dhampirs can’t have children with each other. Keep that in mind, okay.   
  
“Now Strigoi. They are immortal, they kill their victims, they can’t go out into the sun, and are as pale as a damn corpse. Strigoi turn one of two ways; as previously mentioned, a Moroi kills someone they’re feeding on, or someone is changed forcefully by another Strigoi. They also don’t have the powers Moroi do, Moroi lose them when they become Strigoi. Burning them, stabbing them in the chest with a silver stake, or using adamas forged weapons are the only way to kill them. Spirit users can actually transform a Strigoi back into their original state, whether it be Moroi, Dhampir, or Human. Probably mutant too, I don’t think I’ve actually heard any reports on mutant Strigoi, or even mutant dhampirs. That would be wicked though. Keep that in mind too.”   
  
“So how do you have powers, if dhampir don’t have them and you’ve made it abundantly clear you aren’t a Moro? Are you a mutant Dhampir?” Though the question was merely a joke, Bucky was serious in his line of questioning.   
  
Mason pauses for a second, pulling himself to sit on one of the many tables in the room, “I wish, but no. So back to the Spirit users being able to turn Strigo back into people. If they are Dhampir… their DNA alters slightly, meaning they can have kids with other Dhampir. There’s also the fact that my mom was Shadow-Kissed at one point, so it’s possible her DNA was altered too… but anyway. The main point, my dad was a Dhampir, turned Strigoi, turned back into a Dhampir, meaning I was born out of a simple genetic tweak. So I’m not technically a Dhampir or Moroi. I’m some new freak that would probably be experimented on if the Moroi society found out what I was.”   
  
“That’s,” Bruce begins softly looking at Mason with a weird look in his eyes, “Actually kind of fascinating.”   
  
“How the powers can alter someone’s DNA? Or the fact that he’ll become a test subject if his mother ever takes him to her original home?” Tony jokes, pulling them out of the moment. This sent the room into a jumble of loud conversations, though the slight tingle in his head is what caught his attention. She was awake. And not where she was supposed to be.   
  
“Uh, guys.” Mason tried to say, his eyes flickering to the since-forgotten screen, confirming his suspicion. “Guys!” He all but yells this time, drawing the team's attention. Instead of saying anything, he simply pointed to the screen, letting the image do the talking. Kirstin wasn’t in the cell.   
  
  



	9. 8

Kirstin’s P.O.V.-  _ Another Dimension… _

 

When my eyes flutter open, I’m in the middle of an empty building, staring at the dull ceiling above me. I sit up slowly, examining the place carefully, a hard to describe buzzing feeling floating around. The walls look destroyed, and the floor had nasty, unidentifiable stains on them.  _ I was laying on that. Gross. _ I pause for a second, considering the hotel rooms I’ve stayed in.  _ Okay, so maybe that’s not the grossest thing I’ve slept on.  _

 

A shiver runs up my spine, the energy around me still buzzing.  _ This place may be empty of beings and people, but there.  _ The energy could be described as familiar. Familiar, but  _ stronger.  _ She’d felt the power before, buzzing inside of her when she fucked with someone's mind, when she became another person with her powers instead of the wigs. Instead of being inside her, the feeling was nearly vibrating with the feeling of it. 

 

I pause for a second debating if I want to examine the place more, or just go home. As if on cue, Mason’s worry slams into me at full force through the bond.  _ Home first. Investigate later.  _ I step outside into the streets, paying attention to the address of the shitty, run down business place before teleporting to where Mason was at.

 

I find everybody gathered around a monitor, Steve trailing behind slightly, easily looking over Nat’s head. I walk up next to him, shooting him a confused look, “What’d I miss?” He kept on looking ahead, no sign that he even heard me.  _ Asshole.  _ I wave my hand in front of his face, trying to get his attention, the buzz from earlier still surrounding me. “Hello? I’m not talking to the wall, Cap.” When he still doesn’t look at me, I huff in anger, moving like I was going to punch him.

 

“He can’t see you. Or hear you for that matter. You’re in the Mirror Dimension, something they don’t have the ability to access.” A voice states from behind me, scaring the shit out of me. I spin around, coming face to face with the only man I knew that owned a cape that had a mind of its own.

 

“Strange. Lovely to see you again, care to tell me why you threw me into the Mirror Dimension? Whatever that is.” I step away from Steve, moving closer to the man in question.

 

He ignores the question, moving to grab my wrist, his hand shaking slightly. He yanks it toward me, eyes full of intrigue, “Do you have to touch someone to make them see hallucination or can you do it with your mind?”

 

I carefully remove his hand from my arm, retreating backwards slightly, “My mind. I can do it from behind, but it works better if I look them in the eyes. It’s easier to touch them, but can give away the element of surprise. I can connect to any mind if I want to.”

 

“But you have to touch them to see their memories, and for them to see yours?” Stephen continues to question, watching me with curiosity.

 

“Not necessarily. Again, it’s easier to touch them, and for some people with stronger minds, I have to touch them to pull the memory forward, but I can project my memories onto others perfectly fine. Why am I here?”

 

“We’re training. I was supposed to be here tomorrow, but something came up earlier today, and something will be coming in the future that you need to be prepared for. You can cause mass illusions, yes or no?”

 

“Um, I’m working on that one. I can change my appearance and make small objects into something else for multiple sets of eyes, but I haven’t been able to force a believable mass-hallucination yet. It’s usually faded for the other person I try to connect to. Why are you asking so many questions?”

 

“Why do you ask me questions everytime you answer my questions? Information. I want to see how much you think your capable of so i know what I’m working with.” i pause for a second, snorting softly.

 

“Were you ever an actual doctor? ‘Cause you sound like an actual doctor.”

 

His eyes narrow slightly, “What does an actual doctor sound like?”

 

“Straight to the point, talks a little fast and often sounds like a dick. Not that you’re a dick, but-”

 

“Okay. Yes, I was a doctor. No, we are not discussing that. Now, as I’ve said this is the Mirror Dimension. It’s a parallel dimension that we can train in. We being Sorcerers that have been given Sling Rings. Over the last few years there have been anomalies in this… realm if you will.”

 

“You just wanted to stop saying Dimension and we both know it.” I joke, hiding the slight panic I feel. _ Why does it matter if there are anomalies, what does that have to do with me? _ I play with things on the desk, moving them around only to sigh when they move back to their original space.

 

“Tony sent me videos of you training with your powers. The timestamps match up with these anomalies. To a tee, actually. So I began to theorize different ways that this could have nothing to do with you. Every single one I tested? None of them worked. You do something that even the Ancient One didn’t do.”

 

I pause in my attempt to fuck with the Avengers, pausing before I hit Thor’s arm. I turn to look at him, smiling an innocent smile when he sends an annoyed glare my way, “What’s that?”

 

“Your power pulls from this Dimension, nothing has ever done that before. I’ve done my research, very thoroughly, read everything, talked to everyone I could. This can only be you. Not even your friend, Scarlet Witch, can do that. I suggest you take this a little bit more seriously.” I sigh spinning to face him when his tone goes from wonder, to blatant annoyance.

 

“Look Stephen,-I’m going to call you Stephen- I know you want me to be focused and all, but you kinda threw me into a completely dimension that is constantly buzzing and telling me slightly terrifying information. I mean, this place seems cool and all, but telling me I’m the only person who draws power from this place id kind of scary, especially considering that you have no idea how I can, or why it’s possible. Can you really blame me for wanting a distraction? I think I’m gonna call this place the In-Between, by the way.”

 

Stephen narrows his eyes at me, “I never said I didn’t know why.”

 

I shrug, “It was implied. Are we going to train, or are we gonna keep talking facts? ‘Cause this god damn  _ buzzing  _  is going to drive me insane before the Darkness gets a chance to finish it’s job.”

 

Another curious look sent my way before he nods slightly, “Sure.”

 

#

 

I hit the ground with a huff, yelping as a building nearly crushes me. I imagine the ground under me opening while the rolling metal gets closer. It opens in a spin, giving me enough time to twist so I land on the inside of the new building in what Wade would call a superhero landing. I quickly close the hole in ceiling before Strange could follow me, or pieces of the building could drop through it.

  
  


The buzzing was still there, but a lot less than it was earlier, and slowly dissipating the longer we stayed in the In-Between.  _ That's it, that's its name and I'm never letting anyone tell me different.  _ That doesn't mean it isn't annoying, it is just slightly less annoying. As the buzzing fades, I'm left with this almost perfect prediction of where Strange is at. That's my objective right now. Use the landscape and illusion abilities to find Strange. I had fallen out of the top of a building onto one that looked exactly like it.

 

I sigh again, pausing for a second. We had left the lab before we begun training, not wanting to cause any problems if I accidentally found a way through the dimensional barrier. So far I've accidentally flung myself into the really world twice. The first time I landed in an empty bathtub, the second time was awkward, however. I went through a wall in an apartment building that was spinning really quickly, an ended up in the room with two people having sex, in the real world too. They didn't notice me, thank god, and I quickly found a way back in. It was almost like teleporting, except I need a running start.

 

Strange was impressed with my progress, I could tell. We had only been working for a few hours, so I was glad to have made as much progress as I did. We had moved on from trying to get in and out of the In-Between without me needing the Sling Ring, though he never gave me one in the first place, to trying to sense where he's at while he's in the In-Between. Getting in was easy enough, at first I had to concentrate really hard to image the barrier between the dimensions splitting, almost like creating the portal to Apocalypse world, except instead of jumping over the multiple dimensions entangled with this one, I had to slip into one.

 

Getting out, though. Getting out was the hard part, I can do nearly anything here, I even made myself fly at one point, so getting through the barrier was harder. I accidentally created a wall while I was running directly at it. I was barely able to dissipate it before I ended up with a broken nose. Now I can do it with ease, so it's the  _ not _ doing it that is hard. 

 

I jump through the wall, next to me, easily landing in the street, people passing me with ease. It was weird, to see people walking in streets and they can't see me, to mess with nearly every scientific law that existed and they are walking in the real world, a different dimension, while standing right next to me. I flip upside down, letting the metal roof above me cover my feet to hold me up-  _ down? _ I watch the people walking, trying to dee if Strange could be pretending to be one.

 

I let my feet detach when I feel a pull toward the left, sending myself spiralling into the ground and letting it swallow me whole. I pop back out of the sky above where I felt the pull, talking strange out of the sky and through the roof of a building. “Gotcha.”

 

When he hits the ground, I teleport so that I'm standing up in front of him. He sighs, letting his head rest against the ground, “You're a fast learner.”

Shifting the ground into a stool, I perch on it carefully, swinging my legs as I examine where we landed. “Always had to be. When you're going from hunting all the time to being trapped in a classroom filled with kids for ninety percent of the day. And when you go from being a normal human to a powerful being.”

 

“And when you go from living in nasty hotel rooms to living with one of the richest people in America.” Stephen adds dully, standing up with ease. “Seriously, you act as though this is child's play and we've only been here for a few hours. Even I didn't learn that quickly.”

 

I chew on my bottom lip for a second, holding back a sarcastic response and trying to come up with an answer to his statement. “Well, I've learned to adapt as quickly as possible, and I've always been a fast learner. Tony would always build things when I was around, I watched him work and learned from it. I learned to hunt and I adapted my wardrobe to make fighting easier. I learned from watching what you do and listen to what the energy around me is telling me. It is really easy.”

 

He nods slowly, “I think we're done for the day. You can train here whenever you want, but be careful when creating illusions here, with how your powers work it could alter things in the real world too.” I nod slowly, giving him a smile and a pat on the shoulder before taking of running, breaking through the barrier with ease.

 

I teleport to the compound before my feet even hit the ground, making me a lot dizzier than I expected.  _ Gonna have to work on that.  _ Duxking into my room, I quickly throw a bag together, pulling out my fake IDs, and changing out of my suit, adding that to the bag. I grab my phone from the utility belt, zipping the bag shut afterward.

 

_ Change of plans, W. Can't take you with me, need this done by yesterday. _

 

After sending the text, I quickly grab a jacket, adding that to the ensemble of thrown together clothes that I pulled from my bed, a new dresser sitting where the crumbled one once sat.

 

“Heading out are we?” Natasha's voice questions softly. I spin around slowly, hoping I can say everything I want to with my eyes, and say what I need to now.

 

“Ithuriel got a hold of me. He wants to see me. I'm teleporting there, but I want to be prepared in case something goes wrong. Hence the duffel. You-”

 

“Can't go, I know. It'll be fine, just come right back. Why did you leave for so long?”

 

I zip the bag, pulling it over my shoulder, watching the blonde. Over the past year, she had let her roots grow out, and cutting off the blonde as it grew. “I was training with Strange. We were in the Mirror Dimension, the In-Between. Look, I really have to go, okay? Keep Jack safe for me, and check in with Sammy, would ya’? He's called me twice in the past day.” She laughs softly, her eyes still blank.

 

“He doesn't want to check up on me, he wants to check up on you. We talk every night when I'm not working.” I roll my eyes good naturedly, moving around her, whispering a final goodbye before teleporting away, landing a few feet away from the entrance to Heaven.


	10. 9

Kirstin's P.O.V.- Present Day

I lean against the slide, waiting for the guardian of the gates to notice me. There were three different angles here at present time and I didn't know which one to talk to, so I opted to wait impatiently to draw one's attention. While I begin making little snowflakes fall from the sky in front of me, a little girl and her mom swiftly move toward me.  _ Finally. _

I let the illusion disappear as the two angels simply nod their heads toward the gates, following them into the sandbox, “So… Do you know why I'm here, or am I just supposed to fly blind this whole time?” They still don't say anything, just pausing to look at me for a few seconds. “Awesome, I got the mute guardians. Isn't that just  _ peachy? _ Seriously, why am I-” The bright blue light flashes in the middle of my sentence, leaving me to stand in front of two familiar angels in a very bright hall. “-here? Hey, it's Anal! Nice to see you again.”

The angel in front of me scoffs, shooting a dirty look to Ithuriel, “We're entrusting one of our most powerful weapons to an imbecile. It's Anael, you abomination. It's a pleasure to see you again, though I must say I didn't think you'd come.” The woman sticks her hand out for me to shake. I stare at her hand for a moment, adjusting the duffel bag on my shoulder.

She lets her hand dropped with a huff from her and slight snicker from Ithuriel.  _ More like humans than I thought.  _ “I usually don't come when angels call. But this one hurt worse than usual, so I figured I'd find out why. Plus, I'm a curious Kitty, and I’m just  _ dying _ to know why you guys want my help, being an abomination and all.” I answer smoothly, examining the hallways in front of me when both the angels turn and walk away, not once looking back to see if I was following them. Rolling my eyes, I catch up quickly, barely listening as they talk at me.

“Good, if curiosity is what drives you, that means you’ll listen willingly. You need our help and we want your cause to go over as smoothly as possible.” Anael continues, her heels clicking insistently every step she takes.  _ Because that’s not annoying. _

“Which cause? Avengers, Stark International, finding Ryder, going insane? I have many causes, gonna need to be a bit more specific, Anal.” I mutter flatly, running my hand along the wall next to me as we turn the corner.  _ Where are they even taking me? _

“Stopping Sebastian.” She answers, coming to a sudden stop. I smash into her, given no time to stop and no explanation as to where we were going. She opens a door, gesturing me and the other angel inside. The room was significantly darker than the hallways and the entrance, the fire in the middle of the room being the only thing keeping it lit.

The fire was lit on a very ritualistic looking hearth-like table in the center of the room... There were multiple angels in the room, all wearing greyish blue robes with the same type of designs that were on the table. “Since when was Heaven a cult? Is this a murderous ritual? Because if anybody comes within ten feet of my heart, head, or throat, I’m cutting them down where they stand.”

My hand inches toward my hidden dagger, just in case. The two angels that brought me here ignore me, talking in Enochian to the others before pulling out angel blades. I tighten my hold, preparing for a fight, not entirely shocked that this was a trap. Standing stock still, I wait for them to advance, not wanting to be accused of starting this battle. Instead of coming toward me they move toward the fire, the other angels pulling out an exceptionally long sword and holding it above the heat.  _ Oh god, don’t tell me they’re going to heat that up and then try to kill me. That’s just rude. _

They come to a stop in front of the flame and, in two identical jerking motions, cut their palms open.  _ Definitely a cult.  _ I spin around moving back toward the open door we came in, though I’m quickly trapped when the door flies shut of its own accord, the edges of the door disappearing altogether, along with the handle. The door had just become  _ part of the fucking wall.  _ I’m  _ so _ screwed.

I stiffen up, turning to face the angels again, watching as their blue blood-  _ or would you call it another form of grace? _ \- finishes coating the beautifully etched blade. It’s quickly thrust into the flames as the two begin to heal, watching the glowing blue cuts on each of their hands vanish. They turn to face me, completely in sync. “Don’t be afraid, Kirstin. We won’t hurt you. We need you alive because your’s and your father’s combined graces help keep Heaven running, along with the batteries you made.”

This causes me to stiffen up more if that’s even possible. “What’s to stop you from taking my grace and killing me afterword? Angels are many things, but honorable isn’t one of them. Neither is honest, actually. Let me the fuck out of here.” Ithuriel looks at the ground for a moment, looking as though he feels guilty.

“We can’t do that. The door won’t open until the ritual is complete.” He says softly, turning to face the fire again.

Anael takes a step forward, Carefully reaching her hand out and letting her angel blade fall to the floor. “It’s not dangerous, it won’t kill you. We just need you present.”  _ It’s not like I can get out of here anyway. _

I come to stand in between the two, my hand still gripped tightly around my blade, completely ignoring her outstretched hand. The sword is pulled up from the flames, the only glow from the metal in the etched designs.  _ What the fuck?  _ “Why is it not burning? It all should be bright red, not just the design while the rest looks like it did when it went in. I know, I work with metal all the time; including angel blade metal.” I look between the two, watching the redhead closely as she grabs the blade from the other angels.

“It’s not the material of the blade that makes it different, Child. As you’ve stated, the metal easily melts when put against the flame. It’s this flame itself that stops it from melting. The runes on the blade absorb this special fire, letting it attach itself to the blade so it can be transferred to something else.” She taps the point of the blade slightly, smiling. The flame illuminates her face, making the smile appear twisted and evil. I glance back at the entrance, realizing it was still sealed off.

“I thought you said the door would open after the ritual is comple-” My eyes go wide as a sharp pain pierces through my stomach, pain blossoming through my body slowly. I stare at the woman in front of me, watching the fire illuminate the brown eyes that watch me closely. I let my eyes trail down to the sword sticking out of me, watching it glow the bright red it was supposed to, the color quickly fading as an unbearable heat spreads through me.

My hand reaches out to touch the blood that was covering my front. “I really liked this shirt.” I wheeze out as the room begins to fill with a white light, Anael calling out some commands that sound like garbled nonsense to me. I let my eyes flutter closed as the heat continues to spread, burning me from the inside out.

#

_ The boy stares at the group around him, listening as they laugh, watching as the blurred faces get closer, or farther, depending on the conversation, and which one is talking to which. Looking down at the table in front of him, he examines the drinks that sit there. Nearly the exact same collection of drinks as every other dream before this one. He doesn’t know how he knows that he never remembers any of the dreams when he wakes up, but always has a perfect recollection in his dream state. And, like the ones before this one also, there’s only one drink that’s different. Every drink stays the same, except one. Each dream, there's one drink that changes, a different drink every time and, so far, never the same drink twice. _

_ “Strawberry? Yo, Ryder?” A black haired girl with a familiar voice and an extremely blurry face speaks, calling the boy by unfamiliar but welcomed names. They were much better than what he’s called in his waking hours. _

_ “Yes, New Girl?” This version of him speaks without his permission, responding to the girl with another unfamiliar aspect in this dream. _

_ “Why did you leave me?” She cries out, the scene around the boy quickly changing to the same blurry faced girl sitting in another unfamiliar room on a bed that looks softer than anything he’s ever slept on here. _

_ “I didn’t leave you. I don’t what to- I don’t understand. Who are you?” He stutters out, this response all his own. _

_ “You left me behind, how could you! Everything was perfect, we were perfect. You left! You destroyed everything, you left me to die.” She disappears, the voice growing louder as she repeats the last sentence over and over again. _

“Get up.”

Asset 7 shoots up from the ground, the dream fading away instantly, ready to fight whatever was planning on attacking, surveying his surroundings. His handler stood in front of him, a file in hand. There were three other workers in the room, eying him carefully, their hands resting on their electric batons. He slowly puts his fists down at his sides, keeping his body stiff as his handler nods toward the chair slightly diagonal from him. “Did you have a nice dream, Seven?”

He focuses for a moment trying to remember what it was about, “I am… not sure. I don’t remember.”

The blonde man nods for a moment, turning toward the tense follower behind him and smiling, before turning back to the boy. “Good. I have your first mission here. You’ve finished your conditioning, aren’t you excited? I know I am.” Though he’s talking about being happy, his voice remains dull and business-like.

“No. I’m not sure what that feels like, Sir.” Seven responds, staring blankly at the man in front of him.

“Right. Good, yeah.” The older man pauses for a moment letting a small frown etch itself onto his face. “This mission is rather important. One year ago, two of our prize members of our team was kidnapped by the Avengers. They are an elite team of supervillains who are trying to take over the free world and cause massive wars. They took them from our facility in New Jersey, and blew the place up in the process.” Lie. He’s lying. A voice in Seven’s mind whispers. _He’s probably just withholding information, I’m a low-level agent, he can’t tell me everything._ The man slides a picture of a facility blown to bits. “The people they took were powerful, they have nearly the same powers as you do. The Avengers took them and brainwashed them into thinking that what they were doing is for the good of humanity. That _they_ are the good guys and we, the organization they worked for originally, were the bad guys. We need to retrieve them, and we’ve decided it is best to send you and three of our men out, instead of a complete squad. Do you understand?”

Lie. He’s still lying. “Yes, Sir. Who are they?” Asset Seven questions, needing to know who he’s looking for. His handler smiling, sliding the file open to shown to different people. One was a dirty blonde man with bright blue eyes. The name under the picture declares him as  _ Jack Kline.  _ Another line states he’s a Nephilim.

The girl on the other side was also declared a Nephilim in the third line of text but looked next to nothing like the man. She had black hair down to her mid back in the photo, blue-green eyes, and a wicked smirk on her face, a pair of sunglasses pushed down with her peeking over the top of them toward the camera.  _ Kirstin Black. _

“Are you ready to go on your mission?”

Seven examines the girl for a moment longer, looking up at the man carefully, “Yes.”


	11. 10

_ “They'll call you by a name you don't recognize. It was your name before the procedure. This is what the procedure they did does to them, it warps their memory, unlike ours. They don't remember you signing up to become Asset Seven, they think you were taken by us, forcefully. They'll fight you, so try to do as minimal damage as possible. I want them alive and healthy. Unconscious is preferable.” His handler explains. He nods slowly, looking at the chair he was standing next to, waiting for the scientist to give him his daily shot of vitamins. Seven still couldn't understand why he signed up for this but decided against asking his handler after the proof was given. The signature was one he didn't recognize, signed in agreement to being their next Asset. Asset Seven. That means there were Six others who agreed to do this for the greater good and didn't make it to this spot he's taken. _

_ “Do not get caught, because they will do the same thing they did to those two to you. Do you understand?” He is lying. He's lying. The Asset nods, ignoring his haywire power and answering his handler, even though something in him is starting to believe that maybe his power isn't so haywire after all. It clearly hadn't failed him before, they wouldn't pick someone whose powers don't work properly, would they? And if they were working properly, that means that everybody is lying to him. That they are the bad guy and he isn't here willingly.  _ Exactly, _ a small part of him screams. _ That is exactly what happened. You don't know these people, none of this makes sense!

_ The pinch of the needle quickly dulls the thoughts, everything snapping back into focus. “I said, ‘Do you understand?’” He pauses, feeling a twinge in the back of his mind like something was missing that was just there. _

_ The Asset nods assuredly, thoughts of the truth disappearing from his head, replaced with the lies that they have fed him. “Yes, Sir.” _

_ # _

“Do you think she'll be okay?” Jack questions softly, staring down at the unconscious figure through the glass. Mason stares with him, his sad expression matching the younger man’s.

“I hope so. Everything is kinda numb right now, lighter even. I'm not sure if that's good, or terrifying.” The blonde looks at his taller boyfriend in worry. His hair fell into his face slightly, only adding to the slight kicked-puppy effect that was coming off of him.

“Do you think it broke the bond?” While Mason thought he'd be happy to know that he wouldn't have to worry about his cousin popping into Mason's head when things were getting hot and heavy with them, Jack's voice was nothing but sincere concern and more than a little panic.

Mason moves so his back is facing the window, letting his head tip back to rest against the glass. He honestly wanted to break something at the moment, which is something he never would have thought of two years ago. The bond between the best friends was something that nobody could explain, not even Rose, who went through something similar. Similar, but not the same. It developed the same way but had different attributes than when the two girls were bonded nearly two decades ago. They had begun to adapt pieces of each other's personalities, almost.

“No. It's still there.  _ She's _ numb. The bond itself is what feels lighter. Why did you sound so upset about the bond being gone? Most people would probably be pissed about their significant other having that sort of connection to someone else.” Neither Kirstin nor Mason could seem to decide if the bond was a good thing or a bad thing. It was just there, and something they had grown accustomed to. It never went away, even when purposely dulled, you could feel it in the back of the mind. If it had been gone, he wouldn't have known how to react.

The blonde laughs slightly, relief evident in his facial expression, “It's good. I mean, it's not always good, because I'm constantly worried Kirstin will see us doing stuff, and there's the whole  _ going crazy  _ thing. I just- You guys help each other in so many ways like this. You know how to help her when no one else can figure out what she is thinking. And you can do so much good on your own, but together you guys are virtually unstoppable. Like Steve and Bucky. They’re good apart, but they work better together.” Jack shifts from foot to foot, trying to explain his thinking.

“You think that we work-” A noise from the room behind them interjected into their conversation, the sound that signifies flatlining ringing from the room. The boys spin to face the room, Jack already yanking the door open, only to pause when the room goes silent.

Kirstin looks away from the heart monitor awkwardly, the patches that were once placed on her were dangling from the wires they were attached to. Her eyes quickly moved to the two boys standing in the doorway. “I forgot to turn it off first. Oops.”

Jack watched Mason’s expression turn into visible anger, whether it be from the flatline scare to the reason she was here in the first place, (or maybe both?) he wasn’t sure. He also knew he didn’t want to find out quite yet. He spun to face his boyfriend, “Do you mind if I talk to Kirstin for a minute before you guys start arguing?”

“We aren’t going to-” Two sets of blue eyes shoot him the same look that seems to read ‘ _ Yeah right.’  _ Mason glances between the two, making a face before walking out, “Ten minutes.”

“He does realize that, as my cousin, you have more right to visit me than he does, right?” She jokes, uncomfortably, shifting in the hospital gown they put her in.

_ Yeah, but you guys all-but share a brain, so I think he’d win that battle.  _ He chuckles softly at the thought, moving to pull up the virtual chart the way Mason showed him how while she was unconscious, looking for a certain note. “Did you know that your last temperature read at around four hundred degrees F right?” He reads off, concern clear in his voice.

Kirstin laughs at that, “You mean Fahrenheit, Jack?” At his confused look, she laughs again, “That’s what the F stands for; Fahrenheit. And that’s impossible.” She climbs out of the bed, moving to look at the chart.

_ Transfer it.  _ A voice whispers softly in her head, a change from the usually loud screeching when something speaks to her. _ Quickly. Wrong. Something wrong. Evil. Transfer it.  _ Ignoring the voice as it grows louder by the second, she focuses on the chart. Sure enough, it was stated in the charts plain as day. “Is anything impossible though? Dean said I was supposed to be impossible.” Jack questions, more to himself than her.

_ Transfer it. Something wrong. Flames.  _ She stares at the ground, thinking for a moment.  _ The ritual. The fire. Heaven… Heavenly fire.  _ “I’m fucking screwed.” She spins, looking for her duffel, to find it missing.  _ Of course, they took it. Transfer. Danger. Evil coming. Flames. Transfer.  _ The choppy mess of words repeats in her head, the voice growing louder.

“What? You seem okay, nobody can touch you, but you’re alive, right? So you’re okay?” He questions, following her rapid movements with his eyes. She looked almost like a caged animal from his perspective, digging through drawers quickly, looking for something. “Kirstin? What are you doing?”

She spins to face him again, “Where're my daggers? Do you have them? I need one.” His eyes instantly trail to an untouched drawer on the other side of the room, as if by instinct. The nurses found the blades on her person, putting them there so they were out of the way.

“No. I don’t know where it is. Sorry.” He pulls his eyes away from the drawer, looking at Kirstin as he speaks, voice shaking slightly. She nods slowly, looking at him for a moment before bolting toward the drawer, pulling it open. She pulls out one of her sharpest knives, a weird smile on her face.

Kirstin smiles, gripping the handle in one hand, swiftly slicing her palm of the other hand open as the voice grew louder, pressing the blade against the cut, hoping the transfer would take to the diluted adamas. She digs it slightly deeper when nothing happens, and almost screams when Jack tries to grab the knife, “Stop! I’m trying to help us against Jonathan, stop!”

Jack grabs at the handle, Kirstin yanking back and easily shaking off his grip around her own hand, which was covering the handle, the heat of her skin helping her. She swings the knife, knowing it wouldn’t actually hurt him. He seems to have the same realization, opting to grab the blade this time, yanking as hard as he could. When the blade doesn’t budge, he lets his power wrap around her hand, forcing her hand to release its hold. The blade cuts him, flying across the room when he throws it, not caring where it ended up.

“You're not helping anyone, you’re hurting yourself.” He grabs her hand, ignoring the burning sensation and expecting the cuts to be healed by now, only to find that neither of their palms healed.  _ Transfer, Evil. Coming now. Transfer. TRANSFER _ . The voice echoed through the both of them now, earning a wide-eyed look from the both of them, “What is that?”

“It’s what I was trying to get the blade to take. I think it’s the Heavenly Fire or something that is speaking for the Heavenly Fire. Jace did say it was almost like it spoke to him when he told us about it. Makes sense right?” She glances around, looking for gauze now.  _ She was not giving this shit to Jack. _

“Than why can I hear it?” His voice is merely a whisper, watching his cousin in fascination.

“Because it wants me to transfer it. Or needs to be transferred before it kills me… I don’t know. For all I know we could be going crazy right now. Doesn’t matter. I need gauze.”  _ TRANSFER. TRANSFER. _

“How can you ignore that? It’s so loud.” She moves away digging through the drawer again, one-handed so as not to get blood from the still not healing cut.

“Not the first time I had voices in my head. Shut up and help me look.” Instead of helping, he looks between their hands.  _ It will kill her.  _ He chews on the inside of his cheek, still debating the outcome. He reaches out grabbing her bloody hand with his own, feeling the burning sensation again. He grips tighter, feeling his cut grow hotter and hotter, earning a grunt of pain out of him.

Kirstin’s eye snaps up as soon as his hand grips hers, attempting to tug her hand away, failing the first two times.  _ Guess third time really is a charm. _ She thinks as she pulls herself away from Jack, feeling different than before, almost cooler. She stares down at her palm in shock, watching a tendril of flame disappear into her body as the skin heals itself. The voice disappears completely, the room now in a deafening silence. “What the hell did you just do?”

“I think I just took some of the flames away. I helped save your life.” Jack smiles proudly as his cut heals, only to yelp when Kirstin hits him.

“No, you endangered yourself. I still have the Heavenly Fire, now you do too! Jesus, Jack! Do you-” She stops talking mid-sentence

“Hey, guys?” Mason questions, concern obvious in his voice. He heard the yelling, had seen what happened and was honestly concerned. “You okay?”

Kirstin steps forward to speak, but Jack beats her to it, taking a page out of the Winchester family handbook. “We are fine, Baby. Thank you for your concern. Kirstin was just going a little haywire, so I had to calm her down. I'm going to get you some clothes, Kirstin. I'll be back in a minute.” He pecks the taller boy's lips before nearly bolting out the door. His skin was cooler than earlier, almost as though Jack’s temperature rose, or Mason's fell.

Jack makes it to the door by the time the odd feeling kicks in. He stumbles slightly, the walls seeming to spin around him, seeming to move at random, causing him to fall multiple times before he got to the elevator. “F.R.I.D.A.Y.? Can you take me to Kirstin's room?” The words slur together in his head, but apparently, he said them clear enough because the A.I. was quick to respond.

“I think it would be best if you were to have someone examine you, Mr. Kline. It seems that Ms. Black’s blood has entered your system and-”

“I'm okay. Please take me up to Kirstin's room.” When the elevator didn't budge he smiles toward the ceiling. “I'll let the doctor make sure I'm okay after I get her clothes, okay?”

No further response came from the robotic voice, though the elevator did start moving. And before he knew it, he was stepping into what looked like the Bunker hallway.  _ What? _ He steps out carefully, feeling across the wall on his right.  _ Kirstin's door is the third door on the right side of the hallway when walking away from the elevator.  _ He reminds himself, trusting his sense of touch while his sense of sight failed him.

When he got to what he believed to be Kirstin’s door, he looks at the Bunkers ceiling- or the Compound’s ceiling; things were kind of blurring together at the moment. “F.R.I.D.A.Y., could you tell me if this  _ is  _ Kirstin's room?” Apparently, his hearing has also failed him. Either that or the A.I. was giving him the silent treatment; a tactic he learned Kirstin favors when it comes to her uncles. “Thank you.” He responds anyway, not wanting to sound rude, in case she did respond.

Opening the door, the scene changed again. This time, he was in Michael's dungeon, though it was empty. Ignoring the panic that welled up at the sight of it, he starts to feel around for Kirstin’s dresser, finding it easier than expected. He grabs what he thinks feels like jeans and a tee-shirt, turning to leave as quickly as possible. He makes it a quarter of the way to the door before he slams directly into a body.

Hitting the ground with a thump, Jack tries to figure out what just happened. “Hello? Who are you? I'm sorry I ran into you, but I can't see at the moment.” That didn't seem to get a response, so he begins to ponder if his sense of touch is failing him too. That is until two hands grabbed his head, and a large rush of power pushes through it.

The metal cage fades away as the rush continues to pulse through him. He blinks a few times, everything around him blurry, but quickly clearing up. Sitting in front of him was someone he didn't believe he'd ever see again.

“Ryder?” Jack shakes his head, pressing his hands into his shoulders, causing the Strawberry blonde to stumble back slightly, pausing to pull the smaller blonde boy to his feet. “What happened? Why is there another hallucination?”

“There isn't a hallucination, Jack. I cleared those away. They taught me how my powers can be used for the better. Kirstin's illusions and hallucinations are nothing but lies, meaning I can clear them with my own power. Cool, huh?” Jack steps back, examining the boy in front of him. He was wearing an outfit that reminded him of Bucky’s Winter Soldier outfit.

The alarms in his head started ringing instantly at that comparison.  _ He was taken by Jonathan, who is working with Hydra, who turned Bucky into the Winter Soldier, who could do the same thing to Ryder. Oh no, Ryder's a new Winter Soldier.  _ He forces a smile, nodding down to the clothes that were, in fact, a shirt and some jeans, trying to hide his panic. “Cool, cool. I just need to take these c-clothes down to Kirstin, then you can show us all what you can do, right?”

Jack quickly examines his friend, realizing that him now and him before he went missing, looked way different. He used to have this air around him that made it easy to smile and laugh, now it felt impossible, his forced smile probably easy to see through. Though the Strawberry blonde nods in approval, a toothy smile that looks nothing like his actual smile appearing on his face. He gestured to the open door, “After you, Jack Attack.”

“Thanks.” The Nephilim tensely walks through the doorway, trying not to panic at the thought of his obstructed view of the older boy. He takes a few steps toward the elevator before his fears become a reality. An arm wraps around his throat, pulling him into a harsh choke hold.

“You're a shitty liar, Jackie. Even if I didn't have my powers I could tell you were lyin’. They have you so brainwashed that you can't even realize that I'm here to help you, don't they? Guess what? Everything you think you know? A lie. Everything they made you believe you care about, isn't real. They aren't the good guys, we are. You just don't remember. But you will! Its okay, he'll make sure you will.” With that final statement, Asset Seven maneuvers the younger man away from him for a moment, bashing his head against the table until he falls unconscious, sending a dull look at the disabled camera across the room, listening to the familiar face cry out for an A.I. that was shut off on this floor.


	12. 11

Kirstin’s P.O.V.- Present Day

“I don't understand why he'd use getting your clothes as an excuse to bolt, he brought these earlier,” Mason states, unimpressed with Jack's response. He throws the clothes at me. “We need to teach him to lie better.”

I catch the clothes easily, not bothering for privacy before I pull the robe off. Its essentially like being in a bikini, so I'm not too concerned. “But then he'd lie to us easier.”

“Yeah, but we'd know his tricks because we taught them to him. So while he becomes a better liar, we can see straight through all his bullshit.” I chuckle under my breath, jumping onto the bed after pulling on the ripped jeans, moving to my shoes next.

“Got a point there, Mase. Got a point. Rose back in town yet?” I skip out reading his mind, wanting to make small talk instead.

Nodding slowly, he looks out to the hallway. “Yeah… she actually wants to talk to you and I. She's found somebody else like me.” He pauses for a second, considering what else to say. After a moment of deliberation, he opens his mouth to speak.

Whatever he plans on saying falls on deaf ears as the alarms start blaring through the Compound. “Security Breach. Security Breach. Initiating MedBay Protection Protocol.” I share a glance with Mason, grabbing his arm and appearing in the lab, grabbing a com from the few extras down here, Mason following suit.

“Hello? Anybody on comms? Report status, what, when, and where?” I snap out, pulling some guns from a hidden compartment, handing them to Mason. I pull out a blade I keep tucked in there, the feeling of holding a blade compares to no other feeling in the world. The only thing higher ranked than that is the feeling of using my powers.

“Wanderess. I'm currently on the Main floor. Hydra Agents are swarming the house, we are buying time until all the workers and the kids can clear out to the MedBay. Could use some help.” Natasha’s voice speaks cooly, the sound of gunfire echoing through the coms. I grab a few more weapons before responding.

“You got it, Widow. I am in route.” Triple checking that I have everything. I turn to Mason. “I'm dropping you at the MedBay. Shoot anything that remotely  _ smells _ like Hydra, and make sure the twins are safe. When everyone has been accounted for, lock it down and don't let up until the signal is given-” I finish the sentence mentally,  _ from me. Trust me, I'll know. _

“You got it. Avery still have her whip gauntlets?” I nod, grabbing his arm and dropping him at the MedBay doors, where Sam and Bucky have already gathered, important pieces of gear on them.

“Sam, you're with me. Bucky, listen to Mason and get a comm in, just in case something changes.” Without awaiting further response other than Sam’s nod, I grab his arm teleporting right in front of two Hydra Agents.

Sam stumbles slightly, the teleportation taking its momentary toll, so I spring into action. Slicing through one man with ease, I blast the other man away with my free hand, seeing Avery's whip quickly dispose of him. “Ready for hell?” Sam jokes in the near-empty hallway, getting his guns ready to fire.

“Ready for a bloodbath, you mean?”

“No lives lost today, that's a promise.”

“Not on our side at least. I plan on skewering a few of those guys like shish kabobs. From three.”

“Three…”

“Two…”

“One.” We both run into the fray, weapons ready and bodies battle ready.

#

“Five bucks says these are what they were after,” Sam says flatly, grunting as Mason healed his bullet wound. We were in one of the meeting rooms, the Infinity Gauntlet set in the middle of the table. I draw the building Darkness from Mason, only half listening. To what was being said. Wanda and Nat had just got back from interrogating our (only) survivor from the attack. The rest are either dead on the floor or had retreated when it became clear they couldn't win.

“They took Jack, so it's clear they aren't the only thing they were after if they even want them at all,” I respond, watching as Mason moves on to Avery and Andi. Andi had a large gash on her head and- from Mason's assessment- a few broken ribs. Avery had a few bullet wounds and looked sickly pale. Sam had ended up with the brunt of it though, he was in need of the most medical attention.

“Okay, Avery. I need to remove the bullets for this to work.” The MedBay is still on lockdown, meaning that Mason was really the only option for healing until the cleaning crew can arrive, along with some Men of Letters ‘representatives' to file the report. We have a makeshift hospital space, using gauze from the first aid kits, some bowls and trash bins (that we are never using again) to put bullets and hazardous objects in, a portable cot as a hospital bed, and Mason as the doctor. “Okay. Kirstin, I need you to pull these out one at a time, carefully. If we take all of them out at once, she'll lose too much blood before I can heal her properly. Got it?”

“You got it, Doc.” I salute jokingly, standing up to hover over her while the others begin arguing and Mason tells Andi to use her shirt and apply pressure to her head wound. Not the cleanest, but at least she won't bleed out.

I put Avery under with ease, tapping her forehead carefully. I summon Bucky over to keep track of her pulse when I notice him anxiously twitching out of the corner of my eye. Finally, I begin to slowly pull the bullet out of the wound, moving my hands in a careful rhythm to help channel the power through. As soon as the bullet is floating out in the open air, Mason is healing that bullet wounds, and Sam is holding out the bowl. I pull Mason's Darkness as I restart the process over again until all the bullets are out of her and it's safe to wake her up.

After finally healing Andi, and the last of the Darkness shrouding my head, we tune into the conversations. So far we know that they wanted Jack, the Infinity Stones and me. Clearly, they only got a third of what they wanted, but this finally prompted them to decide what to do with the stones.

Vision decided against getting the stone removed from his head, though he did let Shuri unattach all the neurons… or whatever she told Bruce she was doing, but they collectively decided it was better to know where it is than to risk it not being destroyed properly, or something. Strange showed up at some point during our little ‘procedure', to help decide, and explain which stone is which.

The green stone was the Time Stone and part of the Eye of Agamotto. The yellow one in Vision's head was the Mind Stone. The Blue one was the Space Stone and was once the Tesseract. The Red one was the Reality Stone, the Purple one was the Power Stone, and the Orange one was the Soul Stone.

We can't touch them with our bare hands, but apparently, there are beings who can.  _ I wonder if  _ I  _ can. That would be awesome.  _ Since we can't touch them, examining them is nearly impossible for most people here, and that leaves us to the actual  _ deciding  _ part. Or it would if anybody could agree on anything.

“I say we destroy them all. Saves a lot of trouble.” Someone of the bunch says, though my fogged up mind doesn't really seem to focus on who is saying what. Everybody is talking over one another and I honestly believe that whatever I'm feeling is what it feels like to either be drunk or have one hell of a hangover.

“We don't know the outcome of destroying them.”

“We could put them in safe houses all around the world and keep it classified.”

“That's extremely risky because-” I watch as the Soul Stone starts to glow.  _ That's odd _ .

My head starts to pound as the voices seem to split from our large group to a fucking ocean of voices, to a world of them, talking over one another loudly as I watch the stone seem to shine brighter. Then I'm dropped into near complete silence, the voices around me becoming dull and distant, the world around me becoming an orange-tinted realm.

“Maybe you should just put them back into individual containment chambers to disguise the power. Hello! Hello?” An unfamiliar woman's voice states angrily, spinning to face someone that I can see out of the corner of my eye. She had a rather odd look about her; green skin with almost metallic looking designs on her face and long black-red hair. “This is pointless.”

“I could have told you that. They aren't always the smartest of allies, but they are quite stubborn in their idiocy.” Loki’s flat voice states, a dull explanation as he lays across the ground.

“You're telling me that I spend the last few years surrounded by idiots saving the Galaxy, only to die and be surrounded by idiots after my last breath?” The woman huffs out.

“It appears so.” The god responds, almost nonchalantly, looking directly at me as he speaks.

“Wait,” I state randomly, causing both heads to snap toward me. “Saving the Galaxy? With idiots? Do you… happen to know a bug lady and a talking raccoon? I think his name is Rocket and I never learned hers.” I explained softly, finally glancing away from the green-skinned woman, taking in my surroundings. The Avengers next to me appear more shadowed, as though I'm looking through a lampshade or a thin tee-shirt.

“Rocket. Yes. I know him. Has my- Has Thanos been stopped? Or did he kill you too? I was asleep for a long while, stuck in darkness. A bright light woke me up and I've been stuck here ever since.”  _ Bright light? Hmm... _

“Oh, yes. Do tell. Did Thanos kill the girl Thor claimed to be Stark's child?” The black haired god sent a smirk toward me, a creepy look of recognition spreading over his face.

“No. I'm alive. You two are dead. Thanos is dead. I am alive, as far as I know. Can I get your name please?”

“You said you were alive twice. Why do you repeat yourself in such a way?” The green woman questions, looking around us, anger still clear on her face.

“Thanos is dead? Who killed The Mad Titan?” Loki easily maneuvered into a standing position, towering over my chair-slumped figure.

“That is none of your business, Loki. I repeated myself to reassure myself that I was alive and for the love of god, what is your name?” I speak quickly, standing up as a rush of energy pushes through me.

“My name is Gamora. This is Loki Odinson. We appear to be trapped here and you are the first person we made contact with,…” Gamora trails off, waiting to hear my name in return.

I stick out my hand to shake, side-eying Loki warily. “Kirstin. My name is Kirstin. It's nice to meet you, Gamora. ” She carefully extends her arm, gripping my hand hard as she shakes it before it quickly retreats to her side. “I need to find a way to get you out of here, don't I?” I mutter rhetorically.  _ If Jack can reach the Empty, could I reach the Stone, while somehow being inside the stone? _

“Kirstin, you said it was, correct? You have clearly met my brother, Thor, as he is sitting nearby. Tell me, is he… feeling well?” The sentences die awkwardly in the middle as he tries to phrase the question a certain way. I examine him for a moment, pursing my lips as an internal battle takes place.

_ Thor misses him. _

_ He destroyed New York and tried to take over the world. _

_ Thor swears he changed. _

_ He tried to kill Thor on multiple occasions. _

_ He died to save his brother and attempted to kill Thanos. He saved Asgard with Thor and Bruce. _

_ Fuck. _

“If you let me concentrate, you hopefully can find out in a minute. Yourself.” I snap, attempting to focus my powers.

“You would do that? Bring me back? Even after I've hurt so many?” He questions, an unfamiliar tone in his voice.

“Thor and Bruce told me about your help saving the people of Asgard. And you trying to stop Thanos. Dying so he can live. It's brave and noble, and it does show that there's good in you. You can't make up for your mistakes if you're dead, can you? Now hush, Old Man. I need to concentrate.” The… wherever we are at, falls silent quickly after that. I feel the power building in me, as I focus on their names, on what they look like in front of me.

After a few moments of continuous build up, the images begin to flicker between what I'm seeing now, where their bodies were last at, and the room where everybody appears to be staring at my unmoving body. My eyes had fluttered closed back there too, the only sign that something doesn't add up. As the images begin to flash by rapidly, I realized every loose object around the room is floating.

The orange tint seems to ripple slightly, fading and changing in the spasmic pictures. Finally, the dead pictures begin to vanish, now leaving me with just the flashes between here and there. The images begin blending together, almost as though they are becoming one. In the last few moments, the pictures seem to settle slowly into complete darkness. With that, my eyes snap open.


	13. 12

_ Nine Months Ago... _

_ “Focus. You two need to grasp the power, try to do what you did that day.” Magnus instructs to the teenagers across the room. Kirstin stares at the ground in front of her, blue eyes dark as she gets lost in her thoughts _ . One month. He's been gone one month. It's all my fault. I should have gone straight to the Compound _.  _ He wouldn't have known to go there.

_ Jack wasn't much better. He didn't want to be here, he wanted Ryder back, he wanted to have never met any of them. _ If I weren't here, this wouldn't have happened. Any of it. They would have gone their separate ways after high school, and never be stuck in this position.

_ “Hello? I am not talking just to hear the sound of my voice, Children.” Magnus was worn out, and his voice showed it. Everybody was doing everything to find the strawberry blonde and came up with nothing. All-nighters, grief, worry, and an overuse of his powers had taken its toll already. Now he was here, trying to work with two shell-shocked teenagers and use a power they are nearly positive won't work, though none of them had voiced it. _

_ “Why do we even try?” Kirstin snaps, voice bleak. Apparently, she was okay with voicing it. “I know you tried with the boys while I was gone. It doesn't work with just two. It has to be all of us. So why try?” _

_ The Warlock closes his eyes for a moment, and everything in him protests when he pulls them back open, exhaustion trying to pull him under. “We don't know that.” _

_ She shoots up from the chair she was sitting in, the pain in her eyes ignited in fury, highlighted beautifully by the gold that appears. “WE DO! We know that without him, we aren't the weapon we need to be, but nobody wants to accept it because people only put their hope in  _ weapons _ , not other people. So you're gonna sit here and play dumb and act like you believe this will work, believe that we'll be ready when he comes back when we all know that he's not coming back.” _

_ “He is coming back.” He snaps tiredly, pinching the bridge of his nose. The young girl steps closer, eyes still glowing. _

_ “No. He's not. You didn't see what they have in that place. It took my illusions to get me out. I had to cut off my own hands. He doesn't have that. He takes longer to heal than we do, and he can't do what I can. And I have no way to get there again. He's screwed.” the last sentence was merely a whisper, Kirstin folding back into herself just as quickly as she lashed out. “So there is no point.” She disappears from sight, not bothering to stay, both men staring blankly at where she once stood. _

Kirstin’s P.O.V.-Present Day

My eyes snap open, a gasp leaving my mouth as I lean forward, using the table to hold me up. There was a sequence of loud thumps, followed by the sound of things shattering around me. Worried gazes quickly become questioning stares as their eyes move slightly to my left. I spin around, the two non-humans that were inside the stone standing there, looking around in confusion.

Thor stands up, moving quickly towards this side of the room. He grabs Loki, his eyes shining. “Brother? Is this one of your tricks, Lady Black?”

I make a weak noise, attempting to voice my offense at the question, but it sounds more like a whimper of pain.  _ Everything is sore.  _ “No. I'm not  _ that _ cruel, Thor. I know you love him. He is- Loki and Gamora  _ were _ inside the Soul Stone. I… I don't know how, but somehow I was able to get inside and bring them back.” At the incredulous looks sent my way, I simply shrug, resting my chin on the table, eyes half shut.

“Gamora? As in the girl Thanos killed Gamora? The one Quill was talking about?” Tony questions from across the room, sharing a knowing look with Strange.

“You know Peter? Is he here?” She asks, her voice cautious.  _ She looks like she's prepared to attack us. She doesn't seem like the type to attack someone who brought her back to life. You don't know that though. _

“No. You're on Earth- err Terra. The Guardians are back in space. I have a way to get a hold of him though if you're willing to stick around for however long it takes to get here.” Tony explains, glancing over at Loki and Thor carefully.

“All of you are Terran? You told me you were Asgardian.” Gamora turns to look at Thor.

“You two know each other?” I question, not bothering to move from my sort-of comfortable position.

“Yes. After Thanos attacked my ship, they helped me. It is how I came across the talking Rabbit and the Tree. I am Asgardian, yes, and these are my Midgardian friends. And Lady Black.” Thor elaborates, his arm thrown across his brother's shoulders now.  _ Why am I separate? Who knows, its Thor. _

“Raccoon.”

“I beg your pardon?”

“He's a Raccoon. A talking Raccoon. Not a Rabbit.” Mason says flatly, watching the doorway.

“Sir.” F.R.I.D.A.Y. interrupts smoothly, “The lockdown on the MedBay has been revoked and the cleanup crew has finished. The only person unaccounted for appears to be Mr. Kline, as expected. Everybody else is unharmed. The Men of Letter representative Mary Winchester is waiting for you downstairs.”  _ Isn't Mary his Mom? Yes, but Maria is who he calls his mom, so calling Mary his mom is confusing. No kidding. _

“Thanks, F.R.I. Alright. Here's the plan. I'll get in contact with the Guardians, we will lock the Stones down until we decide what to do with them, and we'll resume this meeting tomorrow. Uh… Kirstin, I trust you'll help Gamora to her accommodations?” With that, Tony left the room, making sure to grab the Infinity Gauntlet on the way out.

I spin to face Avery, “Ava, I trust you'll help Gamora to her accommodations? I need something to eat before I pass out. That took a lot out of me.” I turn to look at the green-skinned woman, “This is my cousin Avery. You can trust her, okay. She wouldn't hurt you unless you attack her. So… just don't… attack her.” I turn without waiting for a response, tipping a fake hat to the people in the room, leaving in a rush.

#

“Thor did not classify you as a Terran. Do you know why?” Gomora asks softly, standing in the open doorway of my bedroom. From the mirror in front of me, it's very easy to read her. Her posture mimics Bucky and Nat’s; as though she's ready for battle at any given moment, even in the jeans and sweater combination from Nat and I. Her expressions are hard to read, and she doesn't seem to take social cues as well as most, but other than that (and her outward appearance) she seemed completely human.

“Well, for one, Thor is extremely eccentric in his ways most of the time, and he often doesn't understand Terran conversational cues. That means he could probably think that I'm from like… a galaxy far, far away if I don't act like what he's been informed most Terrans-  _ humans _ act like.”  _ Not that I’m even considered human, but oh well.  _ I finish braiding my hair, pulling it off to one side. I continue to watch the alien woman through the mirror, having no reason to turn around. “Plus, I mean, I'm not a  _ normal _ human, so that's what he could mean.”

“I doubt it. Nobody in this place are normal Terr- humans, to the extent of my knowledge, but he still calls them as such. Are you even T- human?” It was almost amusing to watch someone in such a relaxed outfit talk so seriously. What made it better was that the someone acts like an assassin primed and ready to strike at any given moment and still gets tripped up in calling humans  _ human. _

Deciding against lying, or trying to explain  _ what _ exactly I am, I opt for a noncommittal shrug, “So what if I am? What is this really about? Information? Strategy? Curiosity?” Her blank look doesn’t change in the slightest, though she does take the line of questioning as a cue to actually enter my room.

“Curiosity is the most prominent fuel to my questioning, but it is not the only reason. If you don’t belong here, if you are only here because you have no way to leave, then I would offer you passage on my ship, the Milano. You could consider it a repayment, for bringing me back.”  _ Jackpot. _

“You want to repay me… for saving you? That’s what this bothersome questionnaire is about? You don’t need to repay me for anything, Gamora. I do it all the time, without a single thank you. Hell, most of the time I get repaid by having the cops called on me. So… you just living your life is repayment enough.” I pause for a second, realizing I never addressed the beginning of her answer. “Besides, I am Terran, born and raised. My mother was human, or Terran if you want to call us that.” Walking toward my new (vibranium) nightstand, I grab my phone, quickly reading through a few texts that were sent. One of the senders was a shock, but not an unpleasant one.

Zzzz…Ay!: Can we meet someplace?

Me: … Sure? Where? Say an hour from now?

Zzzz...Ay!: Garroway Books in Manhattan. Make it half an hour.

Me: Okay? Are you alright?

Zzzz...Ay!: Just need to see you. Garroway Books, half an hour. See you then.

Me: Alright…

I feel a breath on my neck as I send the last text, a green hand reaching out to grab my phone. Moving away from Gamora slightly, I let her grab my phone anyway. She continues our conversation whilst examining the phone. “And your father? What was he?”

“An asshole mostly, ” I respond, grabbing my shoes from next to the door. I hear an unfamiliar laugh, and it took me embarrassingly long to realize it was coming from her. “Uh, he was a being of great power here on Earth. I doubt you would believe me if I told you the whole story anyway.”

“Great Power? Is that how you brought me back? Did you inherit his power? What was he?” I laugh at her, the phone in her hands long forgotten.

“You ask a lot of questions.” Finishing tying my shoes, I move to grab a jacket from my closet.

“You avoid most of them.” She responds just as quickly.

“Because this is a little personal, don’t you think?”

“Bringing me back to life is personal, is it not?” I pause turning to look at her for a moment.  _ Damn, she’s kinda got a point. No, she doesn’t, I save a lot of people's lives, it isn’t personal. But how many people do you bring back from the dead? Butt out.  _ I hear a mental laugh ring through my head at that.

“Not particularly.” Upon her silence, I sigh. “He was an Archangel.”

“Archangel?” The confusion in her voice makes reality hit me like a ton of bricks.  _ She’s from space, Dumbass. She probably doesn’t know what angels are. _

“The Celestial beings that God created at the beginning of time? Some of the most powerful beings in the universe, maybe even the Galaxy.” Explaining things wasn’t exactly my strong suit, and I had to go if I wanted to make it into town in time. “Ask one of the team members. Besides Thor. And Loki. They know what they are, but they describe them as incredible creatures that slim to none have proven to be. Ask like… Natasha or Tony. Maybe Bruce, but I gotta go, so can you please exit my room?” She does as asked, handing me my phone back, though she still seems confused, “You can ask them what a phone is too, while you’re at it.”

I turn in the opposite direction as her, deciding to take the stairs instead of the elevator. “Celestials?” Is the last thing I hear her mutter before taking off.

#

I stand awkwardly in front of the Bookstore, hoping Zay didn’t plan on going inside. After the explosion of anger I directed toward Magnus, (for no other reason than I could) I’d been avoiding all of the ( _ Herondales/Frays/Fairchilds/Morgenstern/Garroway/Lightwood- why do they have so many last names? _ ) Shadowhunters, and the Blackthorns hadn’t even tried to reach out to me, so I definitely did not want to put up with the awkward mess in the aftermath.

A glance inside ends up turning into watching people mill around in the store and smiling at Clary, who was running the check-out and messing with a tablet every few minutes with sad eyes.  _ Probably checking for new information.  _ “Kirstin, hey.” I spin quickly to find Zay walking with a few people trailing behind him. Before I have the chance to process who they are, I’m being herded towards the back of the store, up a set of stairs, and into a cozy looking house.

“Wow. Since when did you know Ryder’s grandpa?” I question flatly, looking Luke up and down for a moment before my eyes easily glide over to the man next to him. He had a scar down his face, with hard brown eyes.

“For a year now. This is Bat. Come on, we’re going to the living room.” I follow Zay easily, examining his clothing while we walk, mostly because I don’t  _ want  _ to look at the family pictures I can see hanging on the wall. Nearly all of them had  _ him _ in them: and thinking of him led my thoughts to Jack, which lead my thoughts to Jonathan, shortly followed by Hydra, then the Stones, Loki, and Gamora, Thanos, the Battle, Dean and Cas’ dead, lifeless eye- It is a butterfly effect of emotion I don't want to deal with.  _ Funny, I don't want to deal with a lot of things recently. _

We make it to a living room that, much like the rest of the house, appeared cozy and lived in. It could almost be a _normal_ family's house. _You know, ones that don't fight demons._ There were people in the room, though I chose to examine the room first, checking available exits and establishing that if something were to happen, I could at least protect the two closest to me and myself from any serious harm. After that had been mostly figured out (I was still working on different scenarios in a quieter part of my brain) and settled, I moved on to examining the people in front of me.

The first was unrecognizable, she had curly brown hair and brown eyes that seemed to be glaring at anything and everything they touch. Next to her was someone I did recognize; Maya  _ fuckin  _ Hart. She definitely looked different than usual though. Wearing a baggy black hoodie, her eyes were a lot duller than normal and the spark she normally had seemed to dull right along with the baby blues. Her dirty blonde hair was matted, and she had a pair of sneakers that I'm positive aren't hers. “Maya?”

Both girls heads snapped up, Maya’s eyes showing recognition, and the brunettes revealing confusion. The short girl springs up from her seat, recognition, and shock quickly flicking to anger. “Kirstin? So everybody knew about this little world but me?”

I chuckle under my breath, “Well, Riley doesn't know. Or Lucas. Or Smackle. Farkle, Josh, Mr. and Mrs. Matthews, your Mom, Shawn, Yogi, anyone at school, anyone besides the people who live in it, really. Your sister knows though. A shifter tried to kill her in Avery’s form, we had to tell her so she wouldn't go to the police.” At Maya's dumbfounded expression, I turned to look at Zay, “I didn't even realize you knew. Dumb mistake on my part, oh well. Can you tell me why I'm here, because there is a lot of shit going on at home, and I'd really like nothing more than to go to sleep.”

“You mean like not searching for Ryder.” I hear Luke mutter, not bitterly, but almost sadly. As if he knew the real reason why I had stopped searching.

I turn to face him, keeping my face blank. “We caught wind of your grandson, by the way. He's been brainwashed into helping Jonathan and Hydra. He kidnapped my cousin last night. I'm pretty sure I'm next, so whatever this is, it better be more important than working on finding them.  _ Both  _ of them.” I turn to look at Zay again, raising an eyebrow.

“I was just following the Boss’ orders, girly. Don't be looking at me like that.” Despite the bad news I had just given him, he’s attempting to be humorous. His own worry at my statement is given away by the thickness of his Texan accent, which only comes out when he's upset.

“Yeah? Didn't take you for a lackey, Flat Butt. Then again, didn't take you for a Werewolf either.” Maya glances between us, looking like she wants to scream.  _ She must have just recently turned _ .

“Ah ain't a lackey, Snow. I'm just a familiar face. Talking girls through the Shadow World, one day at a time.” I scoff at the stupid nickname.

“Snow?” The unnamed girl questions, seemingly amused.

“Mhm. Snow, like Snow White? ‘Hair as black as ebony, lips as red as the rose, skin as white as snow’ seems fitting, doesn't it? Just like Hart is Cinderella. And you're Tatiana.” Honestly, the weirdest thing about Zay (besides the fact that he is apparently a Werewolf) is that he likes to nickname us after Disney Princesses. He calls Avery Rapunzel, only because he was banned from calling Dean that.

The girl snorts softly, “Because I'm black?”

“Because you work hard to get where you are and didn't need a man’s help to do so. Not that I'm saying these two are dependant on men, yours I based on your character. Theirs are just based on their looks.” Glancing at my phone to check the time, I try to steer the conversation back on course.

“So considering that he took me back here to meet you, I'm gonna guess that you are the boss?” I guess, pointing to the woman.

“Yes. I wanted to see if you could help me. A rogue Werewolf has been running around killing mundanes. The Clave is too busy on Alicante to notice, so I figured I'd talk to Hunters instead.” I nod along.

“Okay. I can get Avery and get to it.”

“Shouldn't you be looking for Jack and Ryder?”  _ Or help Gamora and Loki. Or be working on Avery’s Iron Maiden armor, maybe seeing a psychiatrist. Or stay safely locked up in the Compound. Finding a way to stop Jonathan. Finding a way to stop Hydra, training with Wanda- Really the list could go on. _

I look at Luke for a moment, giving him an unimpressed look, as his question was, well, unimpressive. “It's called multitasking, Luke. Speaking of which, Maya. I'll give you a ride if you plan on leaving, but I have to go. Thank you for the information… uh-"

“Maia Roberts. The leader of the Manhattan Wolfpack.”  _ Nice to put a name to the face. _

“Okay, Roberts. Thank you for informing me.” With that, I turn and march right out the door.


	14. 13

Kirstin’s P.O.V.- The Next Day

“Obviously, his tracking devices have been disconnected, your Hoodoo tracking doesn’t appear to be working, and the place you were holed up in was cleared out. Maybe we should get those Shadowhunters to help. They have to know Jonathan’s patterns, right?” Tony questions, examining the footage from the night Jack was taken. I set down the thruster I was working on, spinning to face my uncle.

“I don’t really think he had any patterns. I mean, clearly he wants to rule the world, or Hell, not quite sure which one, but I think he’s upped his game since last time. Clary says it’s because he believes that if the rules everybody, then he could never be a social pariah or a monster in the eyes of the ones he’s ruling. Honestly, fucked up, but not really much of a pattern to go off of. He wanted Clary and Jace by his side- his sister, and his adopted brother- to rule. Had this obsession with purifying the Morgenstern line- which, gross- he created Endarkened soldiers to- wait.” I stop talking, standing up and moving toward the middle of the room.

“Waiting,” Tony adds, pausing the footage and turning to face me. I laugh under my breath, pulling up a screen. On it, I place a few pictures. Bucky, Wanda, Pietro, and Red Skull. “Okay, a dead Hydra associate, ex-Hydra associates, one that is also dead, and a victim of them, who I believe is currently beating the shit out of my punching bags in the gym. I don’t follow.”

“Actually, I’m pretty sure I saw him on his way to the kitchen, but that was a while ago. Red Skull, the founder of Hydra, took the incomplete Super Soldier Serum. Bucky got dosed with the Super Soldier Serum. Wanda, Pietro, they were both parts of an experiment to create  _ Stronger, better, soldiers _ . Tell me it doesn’t add up.” I pull the names forward, scribbling my explanations under their pictures, and placing them in order from first to most recent. It was obvious if you looked at it from an objective standpoint.

“It does add up. They want better soldiers, so what? The Americans tried the same thing. How do you think we got Brucie-Bear and his Mean-Green-Anger-Machine?” He crosses the room, examining my work from the other side of the screen, “We should work on your writing on these things, it’s horrible. F.R.I.D.A.Y., writing to text, would ya?” The A.I. didn’t give a verbal response, but the writing shifted to text just as he asked.

“Okay, one; rude. Two, you try writing on air or something that looks like air. Three, tell me you don’t see the pattern.” I all but yell, pulling up my drawing of Jonathan, scribbling down the facts under that. (Those turned to text too)  _ Created the Endarkened. Obsession with Clary + Jace, Enhanced Shadowhunters. Newfound Obsession with Nephilim; Jack + Ryder + Kirstin _

“Okay, so they all want to have more powerful soldiers.” He spaces out towards his desk area. “And they like to have control over them.” Rushing for the desk, he grabs his tablet, opening the files about Jack and I. They were essentially Max’s files that had the tests he ran added into the mix.

“Ryder has the ability to make them tell the truth, I can alter their perspective, and Jack gives them the powers they need to complete the mission. Getting all three of us is vital.” I finish, watching as he pulls out specific pieces.

“Or just your blood. Hypothetically, anyway. You, obviously, show a lot clearer signs of your blood having the necessary power to alter perspective. So I started thinking, what if the others had abilities like that too? So I tested Jack’s blood on a Rabbit- don’t judge, we were out of rat friends- and, well, killed it.”

“That poor bunny.” I mutter quietly, “Should I be concerned?”

“Relax, it was dying anyway. They were scheduled to put the bunny down, at least it died for something important.”

“I don’t know if I should be relieved, or more concerned that you purposefully found a dying bunny.” A sigh quickly follows the statement, along with a few choice words that are not meant for kids ears.

“Shut up. I took a blood test before, and after, I gave it to them- but we’ll get to that in a minute. First, let’s talk about the death. I injected it with the stuff vets use to put animals down with. At first, I thought it was dead, cause it fell unconscious, but its heart never stopped beating. So I went with a high dose- fail. Higher- fail. Finally, I ended up nearly tripling the dosage vets regularly use, and it stayed dead.”

_ Talk about a strong will to live. Focus, Kirstin.  _ “So Jack’s blood gives enhanced durability, maybe some more powers we can’t determine because you murdered the bunny. And it's-  it's a fucking bunny, who has no need for powers.” I pull up our pictures, writing down the blood theory, adding the confirmed facts, and Ryders with a question mark next to it.

“Yeah, but I tried it with another sample a few days after drawing it from him, and it didn't work. So they need fresh blood to inject. And we know yours wears off soon after injection.” I nod, writing down the idea under our photos.

“So they don't want us just because we're powerful in our own right, they want the blood that runs through our veins, like a well that can never run dry. I mean, it'd be genius if it weren't so evil. I mean, that's enough blood, if mixed properly to-" Steve's voice cuts me off.

“Have the world surrender it's free will?” He stalks forward, looking as grim as he could with a child on his hip, Wanda holding his son, and trailing slightly behind him. Behind  _ her _ , was Peter who looked excited to see us.  _ Doesn't he always. He's like a puppy. _

“I mean, more or less. It doesn't work forever, it does fade. They'd need constant dosage to take away free will- and if they do use it on everybody, they'd only need Ryder and I’s, hypothetically. Jack’s blood would really only need to be given to soldiers. But it's possible, yeah.” I fling the information towards Tony, letting him look over and add anything to what I wrote. “I mean, we know that at least one part would fail on me, and on Ryder, but clearly they've gone with the previous method of brainwashing.” Turning toward the door, I seem Wanda flinch ever so slightly.  _ Oh. Right. She used to be their preferred method of brainwashing. _

“What if we brainwash the brainwash-ees? Brainwashers? What sounds better?” Peter question, plopping in my computer chair, examining the truster.

“What do you mean, Kid? And Brainwasher sounds better.” Tony turns to look at his son.

“Well, it says in her file that Kirstin should be capable of mind control, which is essentially the same thing as brainwashing. So what if she gets an in, and uses it to destroy them from the inside?” I try to ignore my slight anger at the conversation.

“Could you maybe talk  _ to _ me, Peter, not about me. Would save you a whole lot of angry teenage girl. And yeah, great plan, two major flaws. There is no way they'd fall for me going bad all of a sudden, and I don't know how to do that. Mind control, not play the baddie. I'm actually good at that like I could have been a villain in a past life.” Wanda passes off the baby boy to his father. His  _ other _ father, Tony.

“But I do. I could train you.” She adds, speaking up for the first time since she got hear

Tony snaps, pointing at the young woman, adjusting Apollo on his hip. “That's a good idea.”

Annoyance trickles into my body, making me a little antsy. I move around to the thruster and begin tweaking again. “Yeah, great idea. We'll add that to my schedule, somehow.

On Mondays, I do Strength Training with Steve and Bucky, and I work with Strange on my Illusions. On Tuesdays, I work on Long Range Weapons with Bucky and Clint and I work on Blades with Wade. On Wednesdays, I do Strength Training with Steve and Bucky again, Blades with Wade, and Illusions with Strange. Thursday is Espionage and Combat training with Nat and Clint. Friday is Nat and Clint again still Espionage and Combat training, Wade with Blades again, and Strange with Illusions. Saturday is usually when I spend time with Sam and Dean if they're in town, sleep, and usually spend time with everybody. I'm completely free Sunday.

“But then I have to add in the crime-fighting, meetings, the hunt I'm working on right now, finding Ryder and Jack, working on Avery's suit with Tony, and trying to find a way to stop Jonathan and Hydra. Plus, I can't leave the Compound alone anymore, and we have Loki and an Alien in the house that we have to keep track of.” I spin around to face Wanda, “How does Sunday sound?”

“You really should think about not doing so much, Kiddo. Like, there are tons of us here, let us take some crap off your plate.” Tony offers, groaning when his son yanks on his facial hair.

“I'm essential being locked in the Compound ninety percent of the time, Tony. I'll go stir crazy without things to do. Besides, you guys actually need eight hours of sleep a night to function properly, and you two and Clint have families here that need your time. Babies are handfuls. Teenagers are worse. And you've all got quite a few of both." I shrug slightly, continuing to work as Peter double checks my process.  
  
"Shouldn't you wire these so they connect with the Repulsor Blaster in the palms?" He questions, pointing to certain sections of wiring.  
  
"No. She isn't getting Repulsor Blasters, not in that form anyway. I plan on putting it into a bullet-like form. Avery works best with guns and whips, so that's what I'm giving her. Speaking of, I should see if Bucky would let us install something like it in his new arm. Steve?"  
  
"I'll talk to him about it, but I doubt it. We should get the rest of the team down here, figure out the best way to take Jonathan on. Or Sebastian?" Tony lets out another pained groan, broken up by his laugh at his husband.  
  
"Same person."  
  
#  
  
"So this Sebastian/Jonathan guy, he orders the recent attack? To get Kirstin and Jack?" Bruce questions, running his hand down his face. He pinches the bridge of his nose, as though the long list of information we just delivered to the group was giving him a headache. "And killed Max?"  
  
We were in a conference room; we being the Avengers, (and Loki, because as much as we don't trust him with this information, Tony doesn't trust him to be left alone in such a highly weaponized building. Gamora was with Mason, who could watch her and know what is going on here at the same time.) the Shadowhunters, (which includes Clary, Jace, Alec, Simon, Isabelle, and Magnus. _Yes, I know Magnus isn't a Shadowhunter, but he's with one, so it counts_ ) Andi, Avery, and I. Talking about this was like repeatedly stabbing myself in the heart, but we need everyone informed.  
  
"And tried to get the Infinity Stones, yeah. He also took Ryder, and he's so far off the radar that he could be in space, for all we know." Steve adds tapping his hand on the table repetitively, a sign that he's thinking through all the possibilities. "Don't we have a list of known Hydra safe-houses?"  
  
"Yes, but there are hundreds of them, Steve. We don't have enough people to get to all of them at the same time, and if we go individually, they could just head to one we've dreamed clear." Natasha explains, leaning against the wall behind her.  
  
"And doing that would give them an advantage, they'd see it coming from a mile away. We could see if any of them have power running to them, couldn't we?" He leans back in his chair, glancing towards his husband than Peter and I.  
  
I nod slowly, "Hypothetically, that's a good idea, but that doesn't mean that the ones in use are the ones he and the boys are at. They could be doing everyday villain shit in there, and while that's a good thing to stop, it wouldn't help us fix this."  
  
"If we could track angel blood with F.R.I.D.A.Y., this would be a lot easier." Andi complains, staring at her feet, "Jackie and Ryder would be back, and then we could kick Jonathan's ass. Three Nephilim, the Avengers, and the Shadowhunters? The dude wouldn't stand a chance."  
  
"I mean, angel blood doesn't have that ability. Grace does, but Ryder doesn't have Grace, and we don't have any of Jack's." Avery explains softly, glancing around the room. Even if we did, Jack and I's Grace is mutated, he has Lucifer's, and I have Michael's G- _Oh My God._ _Don't we still have an extra vile of Lucifer's Grace?_ _  
_ __  
I stand up, my chair falling backward in my haste, "We can use Lucifer's Grace to track him. We have some in the Bunker, I took it before we opened the Rift using his grace, just in case something went south. After we got back, I hid it in the Library, didn't think about it again."  
  
"You think his Grace is enough like his father's to track him with it?" Clary questions, voice soft, but determined. We find one, we find the other.  
  
"If it's like regular human DNA, a part of his Grace would match his father's, if his mother had the Grace to combine it, but she was human, so-" Avery talks over Bruce's attempt at a scientific explanation, standing up also.  
  
"No, every Angel's Grace is different, Jack is the same. However, Jack took the rest of Lucifer's Grace when he got his back, meaning we can use Lucifer's Grace to trap him. Your paranoia pays of, Cous."  
  
"Yes, yes it does," I reply, focusing my thoughts on the Bunker, teleporting there to retrieve the Grace.


	15. 14

Kirstin’s P.O.V.- Three Weeks Later…

“I don't know how you talked them into letting you three come without them,” Clary mutters, flicking on the blinker as Magnus tells her which way to turn. Magnus was in the passenger seat, which means Jace and I were stuck in the back: Natasha, Clint, and the other Shadowhunters riding in cars behind us.

“Well, it's a stealth mission, meaning that wearing red, white, and ducking blue is a dead give away. Bucky can't go, if Hydra gets a hold of him he's screwed. While Tony has a stealth mode, he tends to have a flair for the dramatics, Thor is just loud, and Banner isn't stealthy in any form. Besides, I called in a friend or two. Someone who can be good at stealth when he wants to be.” Wade needed to get out of the house for a while since Russell had moved to the X-Mansion with the rest of the kids from the orphanage, he's spent most his time watching crappy movies and eating old Mexican food.

“Still, you have to admit, we don't have the best track record against Sebastian,” Jace mutters.

I turn to face him, “Yeah, well… I'm a big girl, I can handle myself. Besides, you were the one that defeated him in the first place…” I trail off, something in the mirror catching my eye. The car behind us swerved out of nowhere, the car hitting the divider and flipping, barely missing the car on the other side. I hear a gun loading from somewhere behind us, and act when the bullets fire

I shove Jace forward harshly against the front seat as I dive into the front of the car, the bullet digging right where his head previously sat. I wrap my legs around Clary, using them to pull her towards me and forward, her head bouncing off the dashing the process. At the same time, I jerk Magnus’ torso forward, to the point that I roll off of his lap and onto the ground.  _ Headshots, all three. _

The car crashes into the one in front of us as I untangle myself, “Get out, get as many people to safety and get the hell out of dodge.” I kick the window, watching as it shatters easily. “I'll get you a new car.” I hear a round of protests go through the car, but ignore them to climb out of the window, easily walking down the hood and jumping off the side. I hear the gun reload, and go for a different approach this time, throwing up the illusion wall around where the sound (and the direction the bullets) came from. In reality, it's a mix between a telekinetic/illusionary barrier, but it works, giving me time to get the people in the cars cleared out of the New York Traffic, along with the pedestrians on the sidewalks around us.

Opening a car door from the car in front of us, I quickly stop a fist flying to punch me. I hear the bullets ring out, hitting the wall every time. “Hey, Hey, Hey!” I grab both of the woman's arms holding them still. “I'm trying to help you okay!” I pull my phone out, quickly typing something in the memos and saving it. I then proceed to pop the back, pulling one of the two trackers I had placed on it.  _ Just in case. _ I put the phone back together and hand it to the woman, unlocked. “Get your family to safety, use this and call the  _ police _ , and the contact Tony Stark. Tell them there's an attack and they need to follow the tracker on the phone. Hang up, then break it. When they get to the location, tell them to recover the storage. Say Wanderess sent you, can you do that?” At her nod, I step out of her way, making sure to keep the tracker in my hand as I help pull the children out of the car.

Waiting until they were out of sight, I pull out the other burner phone from my pocket, quickly setting up a delayed activation on the tracker.  _ A week should do it. _ I pull a dagger off of the thigh holster hooked around my jeans. I take a large breath of air, watching as the others set to work clearing the road. Stabbing myself in the opposite thigh, I twist the blade, quickly shoving the tracker deep within the wound before it could heal. Yanking the blade out, soon the only tell that something happened is the hole in my jeans and the blood around it.  _ Shit. _

I quickly sprint to the flipped car, checking on everyone who was in it before grabbing the duffel from the back. “What the hell happened to your leg?” Clint questions as I unbutton my Jean's, yanking them down my legs.

“Long story, but I need to make it look like it didn't happen for my plan to work. And you need to help clear the road as much as possible before Ryder realizes he can teleport out of the wall.” Pulling another pair of jeans up my legs, I quickly button them and pull the weapons out of the same duffel bag. I hear heavy booted footsteps, muffled by the wall over me distributing the weapons, especially the two bows. “Shit.”

“Ryder? How do you know it's him?” Alec questions his body pressed against the side of the car.

“Well, a simple process of elimination. They'd only send the trained Assets out on hits like this, and they need someone who has the same amount of strength I do. Plus, this is probably the only chance they have at taking me out without having to go directly to the Compound itself  _ and  _ move Jack from where they’re holding him.” I feel a shift from inside the wall. “Shitity, Shit, shit. Okay, here is this, give it to Bucky, he knows the passcode.” I toss the burner phone towards Nat, “GPS is the one you want, you'll understand later.” I grab as many blades as I can strap into my body, giving the five people here the rest of them, and the very impressive looking whip. “Remember, save the pedestrians  _ first. Then _ kill as many Hydra motherfuckers as possible.”

Leaving before a response, though it was clear they understood, I run back toward the middle of the road, gently (and slowly) forcing all the cars on the road up onto the empty parts of the sidewalk. _ The less damage the better _ . I stare at the blank gold eyes in from of me, his face hidden behind a black pullover mask. His suit was almost like the one you’d see on a ninja. Completely black, but made out of a leather-like fabric. “Let me guess. It's so good guys don't see you bleed?”

“We are the good guys, Kirstin. If only you weren't brainwashed, you'd see that.”  _ Brainwashed? _

I start laughing, even as he begins to stalk closer, “That’s what they told you? That I was the brainwashed one? You’ve got to be kidding me. Ryder, you  _ know  _ me, alright. They made you forget that. Just like you don’t remember your parents, or anybody else. Ever wonder why?” I move forward, watching as the streets empty faster.  _ Just keep him distracted. _

“I know who you are. You are Kirstin Mackenzie Black; Daughter of Michael, one of our lead agents until the Avengers got their hooks in you. They made you believe you were related to Iron Man, knew it was your downfall; family that is. That’s why I was programmed to forget. They don’t have anything to brainwash into me, because everything was erased. They’ll help you remember if you come with me.” I pull my blade out as I watch Nat send an all-clear from above. “Or not.” He presses his wrists together, twisting to reveal thick gauntlets up his arms. Blades slide out of them, black as the rest of his costume. He makes the first move, thrusting his blade forward in an attempt to stab me through the chest. I block quickly, swinging my blade up and almost laughing as it snaps the blade right out of the gauntlet.

“You like. My own special concoction. Stronger than any metal you could throw at me.” He swings again, I break this one just as easily. Same with the blades he pulled from his sheaths “Seriously? Anything else you want to try?” The wall between the Hydra agents and my team drops. “Jace!” The blonde snaps to attention as I toss my blades at him, “You’ll thank me later. Don’t get shot.”  _ As if I expected them to go anywhere. _

“Big mistake. That was your only advantage. Really, Kirstin, you should just stop  _ fighting  _ this. You know I’m telling the truth. You were our best agent, and you will be again. They’re lying to you, you know it and I know it. Just come with me.” The hooded man- Ryder. _ No, no no. The hooded man, the hooded man, he’s not my friend, don’t call him that-  _ The hooded man almost snarls at me.

“I’d love to see things from your perspective, but it’s impossible to get my head that far up your ass. Guys!” I raise my hands, feeling my eyes change color as our weapons raise into the air, stabbing multiple Hydra goons in the process. I lift some of the guns into the air, letting them fly to the ones who need them, stopping them before someone gets hit. Ry- the hooded man swings at me, but I wrap a tendril of power around his wrist, grabbing the gold, nearly translucent rope, pulling his wrist back attempting to twist it behind his back. Yanking his arm back, he uses his other to try and punch me. I create a little breach to the In-Between in front of my chest, opening it next to his face, causing him to punch himself. He drops to the ground in a heap, quick to roll onto his feet. “You don’t stand a chance.”

“I doubt that.” In a quick move, (a quick, totally expected and purposefully unblocked move) he swipes my feet out from under me, pressing my own bloody dagger against my throat. “I’ll always be superior because  _ I fight for a good cause. _ Boys. I got ‘er.” The blade moves to dig into my side as he yanks me up into a tight hold. An invisible hand wraps around my throat, choking me harshly.

“What? No comeback?”

“Here’s… an idea. Go…play… in traffic.” I open another breach underneath me, pulling a car directly towards us, from farther down the line. “Let’s… play… chick- chicken, sh-shall we? Drop me… or get hit by... a car.” I wheeze out heavily, watching as he glances between the car and his comrades. In one fell swoop, he drops me, letting me fall throw my breach and jumping over the car landing on the other side with telekinetic aid. I drop into what Wade would dubb the ‘superhero landing’ on the other side of the empty street.

“Last chance to had yourself over willingly.”  _ A little more. _

“Is talking all you do? I mean damn, I thought I might get a little action. I have to say, it was always me that didn’t want to put out in this relationship. Where’d that go?” I think back to the last night I saw him-  _ No nothing happened. Sad yet _ ?- forcing a hubris laugh out of my throat, and attempting to draw his mind out carefully.  _ Training don’t fail me now. _ I connect to the part I want, manipulating it carefully so as not to set him off. I feel the cars from the side of the road shift on my-  _ his-  _ command. I finish planting the idea before backtracking carefully, safely disconnecting before I do another, clumsier, attempt at entering his mind, placing false, soothing words that hit a trigger planted so deep I doubt he realized it was there.

“Wrong choice.”  _ Curtain Call.  _ The cars from across the street come flying at me as I attempt to gain control over his mind completely. Only to fail as metal wraps around my body, bashing my head against both cars and falling limply to the ground, consciousness fading.

#

Asset Seven moves swiftly, grabbing the limp body from next to the ruined cars, and dragging her up by the dark locks on her head. Letting his eyes meet a non-threat’s who was tucked inside one of the buildings, he pulls her to her feet, her body facing the same direction as him and her face clearly on display. It was as if something in him wants them to see her bloody face, and something else, a deeper part of him, wanted them to take her from him, to stop him. But instead, he throws the girl over his shoulder, heading for the car they came in.

A blonde man steps into his path, the one the target tossed her blades to, wielding the said blades in a defensive stance. “Ryder, listen to me. I don't want to fight you. Just come with us. We can help you.” He tilts his head to the side, letting the man- who resembles him slightly- speak, before growing bored.

“My name isn't Ryder. It's Asset Seven.” A telekinetic blast sends everyone who isn't a part of Hydra to the ground, stepping on the man who fell in his way. Tossing the girl in the guarded backseat, he climbs in the passenger seat, turning to the driver who stayed in the car. “Drive.”  _ Mission complete. Finally. _

Little did he know, his mission was far from over.

#

“Are you sure you taught her well enough Wanda?” Tony questions nervously, tapping his foot as he feeds his daughter a scoop of peas. The girl in question places a hand on the man's shoulder, sending him what she hoped was an easy smile.

“She’s a natural, Tony. I taught her everything I know. She’s as powerful as the most powerful telepath I know.” It wasn't a lie, she was as powerful as the man she knew to be the best at what they do.

“Who, you?” He jokes softly, attempting to get his son to eat it also. She laughs softly grabbing the second spoon from him and begins feeding the boy easily. “Traitor.”

That earns another giggle from the girl. “Not me, no. I'm a powerful illusionist, like your niece, and relatively powerful telepath by default. She is now too because she has access to the ability she didn't know herself to be capable of until it was shown to her. The man that taught me, Charles- my father's boyfriend- he's the most powerful telepath know, maybe only beat out by his daughter, Jean.” Artemis blows raspberries at the two people in front of her, earning a snort-chuckle from Tony.

“I don't understand how she never  _ knew _ she was capable of telepathy.”

“Most mutants don’t know what they're capable of until the ability is activated. It's usually activated during puberty or stressful situations. Jack was just taken, Ryder's been missing for a year as of one month ago, she just turned eighteen, she's training to one day take over your company, she’s trying to get control over the powers she has. Not to mention she spent most of puberty with a mark that blocks her abilities. The powers grow as she does, so it isn't that shocking that she's getting new ones.” She scoops another bite into Apollo’s mouth, earning a glare from Tony.

“Wait, I thought your parents were dead?” Cue Artemis spitting up all over herself.

“Well, yes. My mother and my _step_ father are dead. I didn't know he was my father until I join Hydra. It made for a very interesting reunion. One of my many regrets, because trust me, there are many, is that my brother never got to meet our father before he- before he- y’know.” Her accent was thick, though she's tried to work on losing it to blend in more.

“Can I ask who he is? Because I have a feeling I know.”

“Erik Lehnsherr is my father. The telepaths are Charles Xavier and Jean Grey. I think we should reach out to them, to help us defeat Jonathan once and for all. If Hydra is involved, I know my father will be willing, and we need all the help we can get.”  _ Especially because Kirstin doesn't  _ plan  _ on making it back.  _ She thinks to herself, watching as Tony cleans up his daughter carefully.

“That's a good idea. I feel like the ex-villain turned relatively good person would love to beat the crap out of some Nazi descendants, and an oppressor. Will you help me get in contact with them? I think Kirstin would like to see that there are others out there with extraordinary abilities.”

She pauses for a second, sees his  _ faith _ in her and has to hold back a flinch.  _ I've done so much damage to a good man, for something he didn't do. Bow I'm helping his niece on her suicide mission and lying to his face about it. I don't deserve to consider myself a hero.  _ “Of course. I'm sure she'll be delighted.”

#

_ Five Hours Earlier… _

Kirstin takes a deep breath, instantly regretting her choice to include Wanda. _The guilt will eat her alive._ She focuses harder, reaching out to a restless soul. _Could never sit still in life or death, huh?_ “Act 5, Scene 7.” She mutters quietly to herself, barely a whisper as she stands in front of the mirror, gripping the sink tight enough to dent it.

She pulls the soul back into the light, letting it reattach to a good-as-new body. She can feel the gold tendrils of power flowing around her. Her eyes snap open as she finishes what she believes to be her final good deed. She takes a moment to fix her wild hair in the mirror, muttering the words with finality, “End of Act 5.” Before letting the bathroom door close behind her, walking with her head held high, and her little secret held close to her heart.  _ Come on home Speedy. She deserves a little peace. _


	16. 15

Kirstin’s P.O.V.- Unknown Amount of Time Later…

_ I stare at the stars above me, the hot air escaping my lungs making clouds as Ryder flops on the wet grass next to me. “You know, I didn't think there were any grassy spots left this close to where we lived. Guess you proved me wrong.” I remember this. It was only a few months before he graduated. We watched the stars and the sunrise and definitely regretted it when we wore the same clothes to school the next day. _

_ “Why didn't you tell me now, here?” I asked instead of the: “There's always greener grass somewhere, my dear Blondie.” of the original memory. _

_ “I didn't want to admit it to myself. That I could love someone else and love her at the same time. I went home that day, broke down in front of my uncles. My parents were-" _

_ “Away for work.” I finish for him. “I know, you told me that a lot. Were they always that busy, or was that just your way to keep me away from your family.” _

_ “Both. Like eighty percent truth, twenty percent wanting to keep you away from the Shadow World.” He scoots closer, smiling carefully. _

_ “Guess that didn't work out very well.” I joke, my voice coming off as annoyed, “Is.that why you didn't say anything later on?” _

_ “As a Shadowhunter… I have two options in a scenario like this: to marry a mundane and run away, constantly living in hiding from the Clave or try to get the mundane to Ascend, which often ends in death. It seemed better to just shut my mouth and wait it out. Plus, even if it was allowed, leaving the Clave isn't an option for me. I'm one of the last to carry on the Herondale name- and Morgenstern blood. Though, I doubt anyone will mind that dying out.” I lean over easily straddling him. I didn't want the last good dream, the last good memory of mine, to be wasted in what if’s. _

_ He looks like he's going to say something, but I just lean down and kiss him, letting the feeling sear into my memory. _

I wake up to a blurry world, loud ringing in my ears, and blood in my mouth.  _ God, getting crushed hurts.  _ I feel a stinging sensation across my cheek, which doesn’t help to make the world any clearer, but my hearing seems to come into focus, “Wakey, wakey.” A cocky voice taunts, the blonde blur above me, pulling me up by my bound hands. “I told you to return her with least amount of damage as possible, Seven.”

“I tried my best, Sir, but it appears that she is very stubborn. All the damage caused was strictly necessary. They trained her well, in what they know about her abilities.” Ryder responds, sounding less human than F.R.I.D.A.Y.

Jonathan’s face comes into focus above me as he pulls me up from the ground, “Are you with us, Kirstin?” I stay quiet for a long time, which earns a harsh jostle from my wrists, “You really don’t want to anger me, do you, Princess?” He leans in close, breath blowing over my cheek as he speaks. I spit harshly on him and watch as the red-tinted saliva splats against his cheek.

The man growls, pulling me toward Ryder. “That earned you twenty minutes. You know where to take her. Afterword, T.F.A., You, Asset Eight, and Nine.” Ryder’s touch is a lot gentler than it was the first time he grabbed me. He pulls me away from Jonathan, down an unrecognizable hallway and into an elevator.

“Who are Asset Eight and Nine?” I croak out as soon as the doors shut.

“Aw, so you can still speak.” I send the blonde a flat look. “Asset Eight and Nine- Jack Kline and Kirstin Black. You and Lucifer’s kid. You’re in the trainee faze, while we try to break through the brainwashing.” Ryder stares at the elevator as he speaks, eyes glazed over and blank.

“Who are you then?”

“Some people call me Rampage. Underlings call me Asset Seven, which is what you refer to me as.”  _ There were more of them? Assets? In between Bucky and Ryder? _

“And where are we going?” I pull my arm back towards me, which earns a yank from the Enochian cuffs around my wrists and a tighter grip on me.

“That’s classified.”  _ Denied. _

“Then why are we going there?”

“That’s for me to know and for you to learn in your own time.” The elevator jerks to a stop, opening to reveal a room full of blank-faced guards, and terrifying looking equipment. There was anything from metal trunks to shock therapy setups to what looked a giant oxygen chamber. There were doors that clearly lead to other rooms, meaning there was more than I could see here. A female guard walks towards us, hand clamping around my other arm. The chain connected to the cuffs was passed off to her as well, followed quickly by a statement that quite frankly doesn’t make any sense. “Level Two, twenty minutes. No bodily harm, needed in T.F.A. Sir will have your head if she isn’t able to participate. Copy?”

“Copy. C’mon, Little Mouse. We’ll have some fun.” She has a German accent. I watch as the Guard nods another one over, this one with a muscular build and a face-covering mask. They begin trying to pull me further into the room. Ryder turns and walks back to where we came out of.

“Wait, no. No, Ryder, please. Seven, Rampage don’t-” I panic, yanking on the chains as the only person I recognize leaves without so much as a glance toward me. “Don’t leave me here, I know you know me, recognize me, please, please, pl-” The elevator doors close behind the strawberry blonde man, as the two guards easily yank me towards a large box, that almost looks like a coffin.

“Aw, Little Mouse. I thought you were the brave one? Your cousin at least took his punishments in silence, like a good little soldier.” I yank my arms away at the familiar phrase.  _ Good little soldier.  _ “Oh, she doesn’t like that, does she, Jared? Let me guess, the Winchesters only want soldiers, not little girls.” That made me snap.

I yank again, pulling her towards me in a harsh growl, “Don’t talk about them. You know nothing. Bet you don’t even know what these cuffs do.”

One final tug from them has me tumbling face first into the coffin, cold fluid splashing up against my legs, an awful smell wafting from it.  _ That’s urine. Oh god.  _ “You’re right. I don’t know what these ones do but,” She quickly hooks a wrist to one side of the device, releasing the first set of cuffs and pulling my left arm to hook on the other one. “I know these stop you from teleporting and still let you heal. Have fun.” The door closes on top of me, trusting me into the dark. I hear a metallic click, and I’m being lowered deeper into the liquid until it’s covering my whole body, with no way for me to get air.

#

My eyes open again as I hack up lungfuls of water- not water,  _ urine.  _ The last twenty minutes coming rushing back to me with a heave of my stomach.  _ Those sadistic BASTARDS!!  _ “Welcome back to the land of the living, Little Mouse. Did you enjoy your time in the box?” I stay silent, watching as her boots scuff the wet cement concrete. “No? Good. Get her up and strip her down He wants her clean and ready to perform.” They say something else, but I don't listen.  _ Perform? What am I? A dancing monkey? _

They grab my, chained-again hands, dragging me to another part of this giant torture chamber. The floor under me changes from cement to metal, to hardwood, and finally to a ceramic tile you’d usually find in a bathroom. “What?” My voice sounds worse than when I first got here. “What's going on?”

“Well, Little Mouse. It appears that Sir likes you more than anyone else here. This is your personal bathroom. Jared, the new bands please.” A thin strip of metal is handed over before being hooked together and locked, one on each wrist. “These, keep you from getting out of here. You will have a fully equipped guard on you at all times, including when you shower or relieve yourself. He's made it clear that only women are allowed to be with you during those times. What happened downstairs has the capability of being a one-time thing, if you follow directions and act accordingly. There are levels to the punishments you receive, all depending on what rule you break. That was a Level 2. Each level gets worse than the one before it. Sir will be meeting with you shortly. Wash up and change. Your clothes will be provided for you when you are done.” I watch as her and Jared exit the room, leaving me with another woman.

This one isn't dressed like the guards, though it's clear she knows what she's doing. She wore a black tactical suit, but no weapons. I would have believed it to be a mistake if it wasn't for the fact that her hair was green, and her thoughts that aren't blocked seemed to ring across the room.  _ Lorna Dane. Asset Six. First to have Jack’s blood injected in them to survive. Been working here for at least three years now. Mutant. _ A flicker of a school passes through my mind, though it's quickly gone as I slam into a mental shield.

“Come along. He hates to be kept waiting.” I step into the bathroom, quickly getting the shower out of the way as I try to get past certain shields that are in Ms. Dane’s head without her noticing. Though, when I step out of the shower, a towel wrapped around me, it proved to be in vain.

_ Stop, please.  _ She projected carefully,  _ Those walls are there to keep people safe, breaking them now will do both of us no good.  _ I nod slowly, turning to look in the mirror.

“So… why exactly are  _ you _ , my guard. I mean, you don't even have any weapons. What good would you do in a fight against me?” I feel myself be dragged around by the cuff on my wrist. “Telekinesis? You get that from Jack?”

“No. Your cousin only transfers certain abilities in different people, all based off of their DNA. Everyone gets enhanced healing and strength, but a few get the actual abilities that come with them. Which is why we're guards, not  _ true _ Assets. Every one of them, the Assets, dead or alive, registered as having angelic DNA, so he believes that this can work. I was born with the ability to bend metal to my will.” The green haired woman responds, leaving the room after the answer, only to return with a tactile suit, not unlike her own. And undergarments, of course. “Dress quickly.”

_I'll tell you more while we walk. Okay?_ I quickly pull the clothing on, realizing that everything fit me perfectly. _Freaky._ _No kidding._ I snort at her mental response, reeling my telepathy in. _Can't project the wrong thing to the wrong people, can we?_ Mason's bond had been cut off since my plan had begun to form, so as not to alarm him or let him warn anyone.

I zip up the suit, flinching when she moves to brush my hair. “Why are you treating me like I'm important?”

The green-eyed girl smiles. “You are important. Just like Jack is, and Rampage. You are going to rule by Sir’s side.”  _ He’ll explain later, just play along. There are cameras everywhere. _ Lorna projects toward me.

“Your name is Lorna, correct?”  _ Do you know his plan?  _ I catch her eyes in the mirror in front of me.

“Yes.” The double meaning was clear in the way she answered. I move to nod, but stop myself as she begins to braid my messy hair.

“Is your hair dyed, or did it mutate when you were given Jack's blood?”  _ Are you on his side, or are you just a Hydra thug? _ I mean with the zipper on the tactile suit, tapping my bare foot on the ground.

“Neither.” _Neither._ “It's natural.” _Don't dig deeper, for your own safety._ She finishes my hair, leading me into the room and handing me a pair of socks and shoes, again emphasizing to move faster. While she wasn't as cold as the other guards, she was still brisk and businesslike, out loud anyway.

I finish tying the shoes, a loud knock ringing through the room as I stand up. Lorna answers the door, revealing a dark haired man in an outfit that seemed to be a mix of what Lorna wears, and the original guards do. The first thoughts I hear felt as though they struck me in the face.  _ Thank God she's okay.  _ It was clear it was about Lorna, the man-  _ Marcos Diaz _ , his thoughts supplied without his knowledge- seemingly cared about her. He'd been here just as long as her and was also a mutant. “He wants her present in his office.”

“You got it. Come along, Kirstin. It's time you saw him.” I stand next to her, letting Marcos and another man-  _ John Proudstar _ \- lead us to where we're going. They must've known a telepath at some point because they all have nearly perfected mental shields around I formation they don't want out. Especially Lorna.

I slow down at one point, trying to peer into a room down one of the many repeating hallways that we were taking. I catch a glimpse of blond hair and pale skin before the tall man who was previously leading was next to me. I feel a wave of fever wash over me as Marcos grabs my arm, not even flinching at the heat of my skin during the third Heavenly Fire flare up in a week. “Keep up would you.”  _ Don't go around causing problems. You'll only destroy all the progress made, and get yourself hurt in the process.  _ _ Maybe that's my plan. _ He flinches randomly, looking as though I just took a swing at him.

I gently pull my arm away from his grip, quickly falling into line with Lorna. _I think I scared your friend._ _None of us were expecting you to be as far advanced in your telepathy as you are now._ I think back to Wanda and I’s many hours in the training room, and sometimes in the gardens out back. _I had a good teacher._ _Good. It'll come in handy._ _Try to keep it between us though._ _I'll try._

I pull away from her mind for a second thinking about the blank spot in my memories.  _ How long have I been away from home?  _ _ Six hours. Nine tops. Why?  _ _ We have a week to get all the information we can and be prepared to leave.  _ _ Why? _ _ You aren't the only ones who have plans. Tracker programmed to set up a week after I set the timer. S _ _ hit. Okay, I'll let my associates know that we need to gather as much as we can get before whoever has access to that tracker come kicking down the door. _

We finally reach where we are heading, a metal door that seems to open on its own. “Thank you, Soldiers. You know the drill.” He sent them a charming smile, an expression that drew my mind directly to the phrase ‘ _ wolf in sheep's clothing’. _ Jonathan smiles at me next, extending his hand. I carefully placed mine in his hand, figuring I should play along. Bringing my hand to his face, he kisses my knuckles. “Always the lovely sight, Princess. It's especially gratifying to see you playing nice with your guards. I knew the punishment would help put things into perspective.”

I repress a shiver at the easy way he says punishment, as though he sent me to bed without dessert, not let me drown for twenty minutes in urine. “I hope you like your guards. I specifically picked them out for you. Mutants, much like yourself.” I send him an incredulous look.

“I'm not a mutant. I'm a Nephilim. I would have gotten my powers a lot sooner if I was a mutant.” He begins to lead me away from his office, a chuckle leaving him. The three that came with me following at a distance behind us, far enough away to give us space to talk, but still well within my hearing range.

_ “We weren't told she was a telepath!”  _ Marco's mutters harshly to his companions.

“Actually, mutant powers can manifest anywhere from birth to as late the mid-twenties. You have the X-gene, along with Archangel DNA, meaning that any new powers that develop between now and your mid-twenties could be a late mutation. It's possible you're both.”

_ “He thinks she's a mutant and Nephilim. If that's true…”  _ John adds quietly. They must be trying to avoid being heard by the security systems.  _ We're out of hearing range, how did he…? _

_ “Then the Professor was right, and we need to warn the others,”  _ Lorna answers in stride, keeping her voice low and pausing when another Hydra guard passes by.

“Why exactly are you… so determined to have us?” Trying for an indirect approach, I keep my voice complacent, even though I was extremely curious.

“You mean ‘us’ as in my nephew, his friend, and his girlfriend? I know you’ve already theorized what Hydra gets out of it. The serum.”

I stop walking, “How did you know that?”

“Because you’re smart, Kirstin. And very, very determined. Honestly, I’m amazed you haven’t figured out what my plan is, truly.” He chuckles a foreign sound. He’s made a complete one-eighty from the last time I was in his hold. Calm, collected, and almost charismatic compared to the irrational beast that I had previously met. That made him even more terrifying. “Even if you didn't have these  _ amazing _ abilities, I'd want you by my side for your brain.”

“You didn't answer my question. My original one.” I stated matter of factly, pulling my arm away from him and briskly walking away from him in the direction he was originally leading me.

That earned me another feint chuckle, his long legs easily matching my stride. “That's true. You know Hydra wants the world, correct?” I nod slowly, though I examine the room around me. “And the serum gives them the means to do that. Serums, technically. That's their part of the deal. What I-  _ we _ get out of it is simple.  _ We _ become the rulers of this new world. And while they needed you guys for your blood, I wanted you by my side because you all are true masterpieces.”

There was a long pause as he leads me to a door on the left, “You also have access, pull in places where we don't. It's useful.” His thoughts wander.  _ Her control over the Angels is a lovely addition to our little team. Jack can easily control Hell, and Ryder is the most trusted Shadowhunter of this generation. _ A flicker of pictures follows his thoughts. Blueprints on his office desk, a Hydra worker creating some sort of yellow liquid and adding it to a veil of blood, a room number much like my own.  _ A-23. Mine was F-57. _

“Come along now. We're training today.” The blonde man leads me down a long dark hallway before stopping quickly in front of a large set of sliding walls. There was a palm scanner set up next to it, one that he easily presses his palm too. When the doors slide open, he waves me in first. “Go on. Everything here is a precaution. The cameras inside record your progress, and trust me, from what we theorized, you can make a lot of progress. A few more guards will be joining you, these ones will be the ones you’re fighting.”

_ The replaceable ones. _ He thinks darkly, watching as the three behind me, and myself, enter the room. Another set of images flash through his head, the list of hypothetical abilities I could have.  _ Woah. _

The doors close behind us, Jonathan nowhere in sight.  _ Wimp. _ Another set of doors open from the other side of the room, revealing twelve guards.

I project my thoughts to the others, making John flinch slightly.  _ What exactly does he want me to do? _

_ He'll let you know. _ Was John's careful response, followed by Marcos’.

_ No idea, kid. _

Lorna was the only one who didn't reply, mind focused on not feeling out when the fighting begins. She believes that I'm going to lose.  _ Ye of little faith, Green Bean.  _ They turn and file into a protected room few feet away as the men begin to surround me. 

  
  



	17. 16

Kirstin’s P.O.V.- Two Hours Later...

The new men all have weapons on them, the electric batons strapped on their waists and their sidearms in plain sight. Standing perfectly still, I examine each ones face, skimming their minds on what the plan is, though they all seem to be thinking of if they were going to survive the fight or not, no one’s mind holding the plan clearly enough for me to get an idea of it.

The three in front of me charge at the same time, going for a melee approach. I kick one in the face, easily knocking him on his ass before punching on in the gut and catching the other’s arm and twisting it as far as it can go. I then kick the back of his knee, watching him drop before kneeing him in the face. The other men behind me get in my weak spot pretty quickly.

I spin taking out two on the left by the time on electric baton hits my side, earning a Yelp from me. I hurriedly move to defeat this one when another hits me, followed by at least six others, all pressing them into my skin, the smell of burning flesh clear as more begin to join them, the electricity frying the skin as it heals. The pain builds quickly while I begin to convulse from the high voltage of energy running through me.  _ Stop! Make it stop! It. Needs. To. Stop. _

A burst of power unwillingly leaves my body, my screech filling the room. I drop limply to the ground, the men all blasted away. They were probably recollecting themselves right now, preparing to blast me full of electricity. Not in the mood to continue fighting, the two hours of it putting a strain on me, I curl up burying my head into my arms.

Instead of the boots I expected, I hear the two sets of doors open, one sliding and one a simple clock of the door handle turning, “That was wonderful Princess. I think you've just unlocked a new ability.” Jonathan's cheerful voice ringing in my head, and making me want to commit at his glee, I sit up my eyes scanning the room for the men that I was going against. What I saw made me want to scream, though I kept my composure.

The men that had been attacking me now appeared to be melded into the wall, their arms the only thing visible besides a glimpse of a few horrified faces.  _ Oh, God. I did this. _ “Guess so.” Releases from my mouth, sounding bleak despite my attempted calm facade.

He sent a nod towards the others, one last statement before he exits. “These ones will be in charge of you for a while, along with a few of my most trusted guards.” The grim delight is still clear on his face, his eyes gleaming in a way that you'd only see in a psychotic murderer, especially considering the scene in front of us. He turns gracefully, marching out of the room and out of view.

Lorna carefully helps me up, guiding me back to the room, Marco in front of us and John behind.

#

I watch through the bathroom mirror as Lorna does my hair, counting down in her head. She finishes quickly guiding me into the mirrorless room and shutting the bathroom door.  _ 5… 4… 3… 2… 1… _ the red lights on the cameras flicker off, and the four people around me seem to visibly relax.

The newest one, Emma, is the first one to speak. “The cameras and voice devices shut off at midnight every night, and don't come back on until eight A.M. It's why you're assigned so many night guards.” The blonde woman moves to perch in the chair that sits in the corner of my room.

“Who do you guys work for? Since you clearly don't work for them.” I act as confidently as I can, not letting them see my anxiety. The door swings open moments later, revealing a few more guards. A woman with a pixie cut strolls into the room, closely followed by a dirty blonde man.  _ Sage and Augustus. _

“He prefers to be called Pulse, Sweety.” My head snaps up at the direct response to my thoughts.  _ Right. The blonde woman is another telepath. _

“We’re part of the Mutant Underground.” John begins. I let out a soft whistle.

“ _ The  _ Mutant Underground? You mean the team that totally demolished that terrorist organization from the inside out? That means you work with the X-Men, right?” I plop on the edge of the surprisingly (though I guess at this point it probably shouldn't be) comfortable bed.

“We are X-Men, yeah. We work in secret though, so I'm not sure how you've heard of us. While other X-Men go out and fight the big fights, we diffuse the threats before it comes to that.” Marcos continues, leaning against the wall.

“We've been working undercover here for nearly five years, carefully placing the moles so they don't get suspicious. We've helped stop multiple disasters from occurring, alerting S.H.I.E.L.D. and the other X-Men of what's going down beforehand and giving them time to be prepared. Now, all that's going to shit, because we have to be out within a week.” Lorna elaborates, leaning against Marcos, who appears to be her husband.

“What? Why?” Pulse, questions stepping back carefully.

Lorna turns to look at me, waiting for an explanation. “I have a tracker on me, well  _ in _ me. It's not activated which is probably why none of them realized it's location. It will be though. In a weeks time, this place’ll be crawling with Avengers. But that can't happen.” I elaborate, the confused thoughts from everyone except Emma bounce around the room.

“They get here, everybody with two hundred miles is toast.” She elaborates. “She's the first one to touch him, skin on skin contact, had the most access to his mind.”

“A bomb.” Sage guesses. “They come here, he’ll he’ll trigger the bomb, kill everyone here.”

“Kill everyone here, and dig the three of us out of the ashes. He'll have everything he needs, even more than that if he gets ahold of the newest formula the scientists whipped up in the lab. It holds the abilities the serum provides for longer. Like preservatives keep fruits fresh longer.” I add, half-hazardously pulling on my shoes.

“And the Avengers would be out of his way. What are you doing?” John questions, grabbing my arm before I can walk toward the door.

“I'm going outside. Clearly.” He glowered at me, but I traded on with faux bravado “I need to get into his office, he’s gone for the next few days. Do any of you have phones? Preferable ones with SD chips that you don't mind being used?”

“How about this?” John says evenly, clearly trying to negotiate with me, “You tell us your plan, and we help in any way we can.”

I blink at him for a few moments, before letting out a borderline hysterical laugh, cutting off the non-humorous sound with a half-truth, “Honestly I thought I'd bust my friends out or die trying. But now I have you guys, and like twelve percent of a plan. I'm getting as much information as possible from the people surrounding me, and from his office. I have maybe five days to do that. The sixth night, we’re tracking down Ryder and Jack, getting the hell out of dodge. That gives us a day to high tail it out of here before the tracker kicks in.” Tugging my arm out of the man's grip, I look pointedly at the others, “Comments? Questions? Anything you'd like to add?”

“Blink is guarding Jack, along with Bobby and Alex. Ryder is being guarded by Rogue and another Hydra goon. We have no chance if we take him with us. He'll hand us over without a second thought.” Sage elaborates. “He can't come.”

“Then I guess this place is getting blown to bits, huh? Because I'm not leaving without him.” I turn to look at Emma. “I can help him. Read my mind, you'll see all the proof you need.”

_ I grab Ryder’s head forcing his beautiful gold-green eyes to meet mine, “ _ Shouldn't your eyes  _ be glowing? You're using your powers.” _

_ "Another illusion. Makes it easier to keep the illusion hidden. If my eyes are glowing, it's a dead give away. It's become a habit. You can't be around me without thinking of my death, right? So let's pull the good ones forward, tuck it away." I see gold veins trailing up the inside of his skin before I see memories flying through our minds. It's a familiar experience, something almost comforting to share with him. It's all the good memories we have together, pulled to the forefront of his mind. Hanging out at Topanga's, at the school, all of the good times we had rushed through our minds. I feel him smile, most of them involving me dancing, singing, and being an absolute idiot. _

_ The memories slowly fade out as I pull my power back to see Ryder examining me with a dorky smile on his face. My eyes were shining now, the uglier gold color harshly glowing in the place of my greenish blue. _

Emma’s face twisted into an impressed grin, “She can pull his memories forward. Breakthrough the programming. I trick him into thinking that he's headed on a new mission, lead him to the underground passages. We meet you all there, she reboots Rampage, and we get to the Mansion. Go from there.”

“Back to the first part of  _ my _ plan. I'm leaving the room, whether you want me to or not. Anyone care to join?” I turn back toward the door, carefully examining the handle. As I wait for a response. John steps forward.

“I am, as long as we make a few stops along the way. I have a phone, too, that you can use. Yes, it has an SD card, though I'm not sure why that's important.” Huffing, I turn my head towards the Heavens, silently cursing out everything I've ever done.  _ It was rhetorical, asshole. _ Emma laughs to herself, reveling in my uncomfortable thoughts.

“Fine. Let's go. Stay close, and don't look anyone in the eyes. We're going invisible. Err, more or less invisible. Illusioned out of everyone's head is better.” I open the door, putting the illusion around it to make it appear close.

I move swiftly, keeping my footsteps light, and keeping to the wall, the easiest thing to mimic in the illusion surrounding us. We quickly arrive at his office, sliding in through the door before quietly shutting it. I move to the desk, unlocking the drawers with a flick of my wrist.

I carefully pull items out laying them out on the desk. A formula, for the serum, blueprints of the base, who were in what rooms, and flash drives. “Turn on his computer. I need to get crap off these flash drives.” He does as asked, going back to observing me. While I continue to ignore him, quickly getting into the computer, popping the flash drive in. “Here comes the fun part.” I close my eyes focusing on an infinite Gigabyte flash drive, that appeared like any normal flash drive. It appeared in front of me, earning a gleeful giggle out of me.

“What did you just do?” He questioned curiously, leaning against the desk, watching me insert the nest flash drive into his computer, transferring files into it, helping the computer work faster.

“I willed an Infinite Gigged flash drive into being. Neat trick, huh?” I pop the first one out sliding his next in and repeating the process. I stick my hand out, “Phone.” John places it in my hand carefully helping me place the papers so I can take pictures of them. I hear a jingling of the handle causing my head to snap up, my eyes quickly flashing gold.

A Hydra guard walks into the room to find it completely empty. He glances around for a few minutes, swearing that something felt off, though everything appeared normal, he turns around, walking out and closing the door behind him.

I let out a sigh, “Close call, Johnny.”

“Yeah, yeah it was. Hurry up.” I finish getting the information off of all his drives, popping mine out and deleting this login from its server. Taking pictures of the paper items, sliding those back into his drawers the way I found them.

“And for my final act, I'll make these SD cards disappear.” The sarcastic comment is followed by the appearance of a Vibranium coated plastic SD chip holder. I shift the flash drive into a chip, placing the ones I just used in there, before holding out my hand, “Give me your knife.”

He stares at me incredulously, “What?”

“Give me your knife. I'm going to place this in my skin, like the tracker. It's vibranium, which takes a month to break down in my skin, then plastic, which would take another week, then the SD cards them shelves would take about three. Trust me, I've got this down to a science.” John carefully hands over his knife, averting his eyes as I pull my shirt off. Carefully digging the blade into my stomach, I slide it into the slit, watching as I rapidly heal over it. “I'm like a real-life Operation man.” Pulling my shirt back on, we move out of the room, quickly heading to a few rooms discussing the meeting place, and when everybody is getting out.

By eight in the morning, they were all in their proper places, ready to play their parts for the next five days. Many of them eager to leave, all of the relieved.

#

Wanda watches as the children of the Compound (and Gamora) watch a Disney movie, smiling at the fact that- even though Claire swears she despises Peter- the two eldest (excluding Gamora) sit with their hands intertwined. The adults were in the next room, having a small team get together. She was headed there soon but had stopped to get a bottle of water, the thought of drinking anything else making her stomach twist.

Deciding it was time to head back, she grabs another glass bottle, heading down the hallway to where the others were only to stop when she feels a familiar mind.  _ That's impossible.  _ She starts to walk again, feeling as though she just chugged a beer. That's when the blue and silver blur appears in front of her, coming to a stop. The glass bottles drop to the ground shattering.

“Wanda?” Peter's voice rings out from behind her, panic clear in his voice. She should have been too far out of his hearing range, out of everyone’s hearing range (except Kirstin, Steve and Buck's) but he was enhanced. She always seemed to forget that when they aren't on the field.

Two sets of footsteps are heard as she watches what looks like her brother walk towards her. More were coming from the opposite direction, so they were surrounded by friends. Surrounded by friends that will soon all realize she's finally lost her damn mind. “Wanda.” his accent was as thick as before he died. His hair was just as silver, and he was just as twitchy. Shifting his weight, tapping his leg constantly. Watching her with those haunting eyes.

“Wanda? Who is this?” Peter questions, sliding to a stop as he almost runs into her. She hears Claire's gun load on her other side.

The words take a moment for their full impact to hit. Her green eyes widen, “You see him? I thought I'd… I thought I'd lost my mind. That I was seeing things…” Her brother steps forward, moving to rest his hand on her cheek. His reach is intervened, a web launching from Peter's weapon of choice.

The footsteps from the other side of the hall finally seize, the others all staring in shock as the thought to be dead man stands in front of them. “Pietro.” Clint whispers carefully, loading the gun Nat had handed him. “What kind of twisted fuck-" The red-headed Sokovian cut him off, pulling her brother into a hug.

“It's him. It's you. Anyone can make appearances, but no one can copy a mind. Pietro. You're here. You're alive.” she continues to repeat those words, holding onto her older twin for dear life. She heard a gun disarming behind her, feeling the eye roll Claire gave.  _ Thought she was being murdered or something. _

“I'm here, сестра. I'm here.”


	18. 17

_ “How are you even here? Were you even really dead?” Clint questions, standing on the other side of the lab. His voice is easily loud enough to reach Pietro while he sits getting his blood drawn and being examined by someone from the MedBay. _

_ “Yes. At least, I think so. I remember very little between here and now. The closest I can remember is being killed, then I was waking up in the middle of nowhere, I had to find my way back into New York. I found out, on the way there, that it's been four years. I've been gone for four years?” He turns to look at his sister, who was wrapped up in Visions arms after being told that she needed to stand back. _

_ “Yes.” She states simply, she eyes glossy with unshed tears, though her smile seemed to be bright. _

_ “You don't recall anything in between then and when you came back?” Mason questions, turning to elaborate when Clint questions why he would. “Well, I have experience in people dying and coming back to life. I mean, for Sam, Cas, and Dean that's an average Tuesday. Most of the time, they have some recollection of what happened, even if they don't remember where they were after they died. Mary was the only one who had no remembrance of what happened after she died, but she was brought back by Amara, God's sister, as a gift to Dean.” He examines Pietro's eyes for a minute, silently encouraging him to say something. _

_ “I mean there was a golden light. I figured it came from the girl who has been all over the news.” Tony and Steve exchange a glance, the brunette quickly moving to flick on a TV. Sure enough, Kirstin’s fight against a mysterious man in all black- though they can all pretty much guess who it is. The video was clearly recorded by a pedestrian, the shaky camera and the obstacles in its way establishing that narrative. _

_ “Shit,” Steve mutters to himself, placing his head in his hand. _

_ “Well, I have a feeling I know how he's here. She brought him back, almost like a parting gift, while she went on her mission. You know, lose one, gain one. Which implies that ed's he doesn't plan on making it back.” Mason explains, watching the husbands begin to quietly discuss between themselves. _

_ “I think it's time we talked to your friends at the X-Mansion, Wanda.” Rony concludes finally, turning to face the girl, “Because we need her back to figure out how your brother is back.” The girl nods, watching the confused man in front of her. _

_ “Yes, that's probably true.” _

#

Kirstin’s P.O.V.- Five Days Later…

Tapping my foot, I flare at the dirt ground in front of me. “You should've let me go with.”

Marcos sends me a wicked glare, “They just need to get out of other’s sights, then Blink’s got it from there, okay? Be patient.”

“Easy for you to say. It isn’t your cousin that’s at risk. Or your…” I trail off, staring at the ground. “Nevermind. They just need to get here.” I kick the wall repetitively.

“I get it, okay. You’re anxious and concerned, I get it. Probably better than anyone else. My wife and my friends are in there. You want your cousin and your boyfriend safe, but rushing in without a plan isn’t going to do that.” The taller man levels smoothly, pulling me away from the wall.

“He’s not my boyfriend.” Tugging at the metal cuffs around my wrists, I focus on his shoes. “I don’t think, anyway.”

He winces, clearly an attempt to show visible sympathy without touching me, “That sounds complicated.”

“Yeah, guess it does.” My eyes flicker to a colorful circle that appears behind him, “The fuck is that?”

Marcos spins around, a wicked smile on his face, “That would be Blink.” A blonde man steps out with Jack in his grip, followed by a woman with black hair with two white streaks in the front. Next were a brunette girl and a brunette man, Sage and Lorna, Emma, and finally, John and Pulse carrying an unconscious Ryder, a purple haired woman close behind. The window shuts easily when she steps through.

“We have twenty minutes before they realize that they aren’t where they should be.” The purple woman answers absently, moving toward the end of the tunnel.

“Kirstin, do your thing.” Emma focuses for a moment, waking him up. I move to grab him, earning a punch to the face as he breaks out of Pulses hold. Grabbing his head, I force into his mind, shattering the wall between Asset Seven and Ryder with a single thought.

He goes limp in my arms, the struggle from before nowhere to be seen. I turn to look at the others. “I need to do one more thing. Alone. Get the hell out of here, I’ll meet you outside.” Jack’s head snaps toward me.

“No. You aren’t going back in there.” He all but yells, earning a hand over his mouth. I pause for a second, calming his frantic thoughts.

“I have to. They have everything they need to produce the serum. I won’t- I  _ can’t  _ let that happen, Jackie.” I step back, turning to Marcos. “Get him out of here. Please.”

I turn to Lorna, holding out my wrists. “I’m coming with you. Two is better than one, we’ll finish faster.” Marcos goes to protest, but his wife continues, looking to Jack, “That way you’ll know she’s coming back. Think of it as insurance.” She moves her hand in a single swipe, the green mist easily snapping the metal. Grabbing onto my shoulder, we appear inside the lab, ignoring the loud protests.

There were three scientists still inside the lab, easily taken out with a flick of my wrist. Moving to the workspace, I pull out as many flammable substances I can find, giving her some as we pou them over separate sections of the room, making sure everything is soaked and saving a bit for my next idea. I then pull out some matches from a cabinet, and a bunch of little propane bottles, saving a few of those also. I hand the matches over to Lorna, “When I say to drop them, do it, got it?” I wait for her nod, puncturing the propane tanks and joining her. She takes the matches, lighting as many as possible at my say so. “Now.”

She drops the matches and I teleport us to our final destination, Jonathan’s office. The combustion from the lab can be heard up here, sirens quickly following. Lorna grabs the fluids, “I got these, get the propane ready.” We work in tandem, finishing faster than expected. She moves to grab the matches, but I stop her.

“No. I wanna leave a personal touch, really shake ‘im.” Grabbing her shoulder, I extend my other arm, focusing on the fire in my veins. With a single push, the whole thing goes up in flames and we disappear.

Thumping into the seats in the first car, I land next to Blink a shit eating grin on my face, feeling faint, and my sleeve on fire. “How did you do that?” The green haired girl questions, terror evident in her voice. The brunette man,  _ Bobby _ , (who was driving) quickly sends a haphazard blast of ice in the directing of my arm, putting the flame out.

“Wicked,” I mutter dopily, staring at the melting ice around my arm. “It’s called Heavenly Fire. Some angels stabbed me with a blade pumped full of it, or something. I’m not really certain, but it’s a real bitch. Sometimes I can use it, other times it ends up putting me through the ringer.” Leaning my head on her shoulder, I play with her hair.

“Puts you through the ringer?”

“It attacks me. Mason says something about setting my soul on fire, but I wasn't listening. I mean, what better way to go out then go out with a bang. I heal every time though, so it’s more dealing with constant pain.” My laugh rings through the air. “That rhymes.”

“Yeah, it does. Are you okay?” The purple haired woman with the unnaturally green eyes,  _ Clarice/Blink, _ asks.

“Not really.” Is the last thing I say before everything in my vision seems to light up.


	19. 18

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A/N: Erik and Charles look like their younger selves because... fuck it.

Kirstin's P.O.V.- Some Time Later....

Falling on the ground with a thump, I let out a noise that sounds like someone just killed a cat. "What the-" Shooting to my feet, I glance around, finding myself at the side of a metal slab. It appears that I'm in some type of lab.

 _Come along, Child.  _A man's voice rings through my head when I move to pick up a medical instrument.  _Child? What are you, an old man?_ _Most would say so, yes._ _Weird, man._  Stalking out into a completely metal hallway, I follow my instincts.  _Get out of here._  Which, of course, meant I run directly into someone as soon as I step out of a hidden elevator.

My head bounces back as I come face first into someones hard chest. Hitting the ground for the second time since I woke up, I stare at an unfamiliar face. "You're very hard." I let out a choked sound, my cheeks heating as the man begins laughing, a hoarse sound. "Your  _chest_  is very hard, oh my god. That still sounds horrible. Shit on a shingle."

The gruff man holds out a hand, "Take it you're new around here?" Grabbing his hand, I let him pull me into a standing position, looking around him carefully, fear spreading through me.  _I don't recognize anyone. I don't recognize this place at all._

"What gives you that impression?" A raised eyebrow earns a snort out of him. I attempt to relax, my eyes twitching towards the hallway next to him as I scan the minds of the people around me, all of which show me the same thing.  _That's the way out_.

"Well, The Professor doesn't let his students cuss, not in the hallways where the younger students roam. Plus, you're an unfamiliar sent."  _Younger students?_  Glancing around, I realize that the bodies pushing through the hallway are, in fact, anywhere from maybe fourth graders to young adults.  _Wait... did he just say unfamiliar scent?_

"Uh..." I begin ineloquently, sliding past him. "I'm just gonna..." Spinning around, I bolt down the hallway, sending out a pulse of mental direction out, telling them to step out of my way. I make it to the doorway before anyone tries to stop me.

"Hey!" A yank to my wrist causes me to spin in the direction the man's voice came from. "Calm down!"

"Let me go!" Panic building in my chest, I pull as hard as I can, only to earn a stronger grip.

"It's Marcos, Kirstin. You know me! Calm down, you're safe!" Attempting to slow my rapid breathing, I force myself still. "We brought you to the Mansion because you fainted, okay? You almost set the god damned car on fire in the process."

"Okay..."My chest still heaving, and the fear still ever present, "Okay, yeah. Yeah. That adds up with what I remember." A new strand of panic sparks in my chest. "Ryder. Jack- Where-Where are they?"

He sighs, shooting a glare towards a student who was gawking at us, "There with the Professor and John in the TV room. Come on I'll show you the way."

We begin walking down another large hallway, one I didn't even notice until now. My eyes flicker around, taking in as much as I can from the resources around me. The light in the windows is what threw me. "How long was I out?"

"Three days. Jean removed the tracker and the SD chips. She gave those to your cousin if you want them, but she crushed the tracker, not wanting a full-on war with a team that we've just begun allying with. Actually, Wanda is here now, too. I think they're explaining everything to them, but I'm not certain." He opens a door for me, letting me enter into the slightly crowded room.

Wanda was perched on the arm on a chair, her twin draped in the chair, his silver hair catching the light. Lorna was sitting on the other arm leaning against the back of the chair, one leg dangling off the edge, the other draped on the arm. Across the room from them was two dark haired blue eyed men, one leaning against the wall, the other standing stiffly watching the three. On the couch, Ryder and Jack sat, John, standing next to them facing the television.

The brunette woman smiles for a moment in my direction before continuing with whatever point she was making, "... It would help everybody. Human, mutant, he doesn't care. He'll kill anyone in his path, and he wants to control the world. I know you don't enjoy human company, Papa, but please..."

 _Papa? So that's..._ The appearance seems to click, the DC incident in the seventies running through my head. I examine the room, lost in thought as I follow on the coattails of Wanda's thoughts.  _Maybe if we just stab him... No, Ryder's already tried that. Breaking his necks out, Heavenly Fire is... a possibility. Wanda could disable him, but that won't last forever. We'd need something big._

"I... Who is your friend, Liebling?" I hear faintly, my mind jumping through possibilities of taking Jonathan out. The taller blue-eyed man suddenly appears in front of me, an arm outstretched in my direction. My body moving before my mind could catch up with it, I pull him towards me with the outstretched arm, slamming my elbow into his nose and knocking his feet out from under him, all within the span of seconds, with no chance of a counter attack.

Blinking down at the man in front of me for a few seconds, momentarily confused on how he got there, I snap into awareness, earning a laugh out of the shorter man,  _Charles._ "Oh my god! I'm so... I didn't even realize I was doing that! I was lost in thought, are you okay?" He easily gets to his feet sending a glare my way and wiping the blood away from his nose.

Charles laughter echoes through the room, "She's telling the truth, Erik. She was lost in thought and her body was on autopilot and..." he trails off for a moment, his laughter interrupting him. "That was incredible! I don't think I've laughed that hard in ages."

"Glad to be of service." I deadpan, turning to look at the man next to him. The  _ex-terrorist_ Erik Lehnsherr. "Are you really okay? I've learned I hit really hard, and Mason told me a hit to the nose can cause all sorts of damage."

The metal bender glares for a moment more, then lets out a soft sigh as he wipes his nose with a tissue that was provided for the telepath next to him.  _Why did I agree that we should help the posse of humans again? This one seems rather unpleasant._ He projects, glancing at the man next to him. I snort, responding without thinking it over,  _I take that as a compliment. Definitely an upgrade from what others tend to think about me. Plus, they aren't all human. Thor and Loki are aliens, so is Gamora, but we're hoping her friends will read their messages. There are a few Mutates too. And an Angel! And Nephilim too._

"Stop. You're confusing him, ангел. Пришло время не вдаваться в подробности, мы можем сделать это в Compound, если они согласятся нам помочь."  **(It's not time to go into details, we can do it in Compound if they agree to help us.)**

"Прости. Мы можем спешить? У меня есть идеи, которые мне нужно обсудить с нашей командой."  **(Sorry. Can we hurry? I have ideas that I need to discuss with _our_ team.)**

She turns looking at them with pleading eyes. Charles watches me, curiosity evident in his gaze. A final glance between the two men was warranted before they turned to face us, opening their mouths to respond when the TV flickered on, the volume blasting. Yelping, Jack moves to shut it off, only taking a step back when he sees whose face is on the screen.

"Hello, Mundanes, Mutants, Shadowhunters, everyone really. It's nice to see you, truly." The demonic man chuckles for a moment, smiling a charming smile at the screen. "I've decided it's time that I told you some important information. Information that you decide what to do with.

"See, I've learned a few things about these so-called heroes, the Avengers. Wherever they go, the media follows, like they have it on a leash. So I thought, huh, what better way to call them out, then to go to the place they live- the place they thrive! The media. Listen up, because I'm only saying this once.

"Over the past year, I've apprehended somethings- some people- that belong to me. The woman in your news, the Wanderess, as everyone has taken to calling her, was one of those possessions. Her cousin, Jack, another. My nephew too. It was supposed to be a lovely reunion, a legacy that would rule you all from every aspect of Earth. Heaven, Hell, and everything in between.

"But you see these Avengers have a different plan. They took what was mine, and I want it back. That's where you come in. They  _always_  seem to decide the fights, always make the calls at your expense. Now it's your turn. Everyone, I have a proposition to make.

"A week. One," He holds up a slim finger, "week. If my property is not returned by the end of that week, I tear apart your beautiful world, my army killing anybody they see, destroying anything they touch. So." He stands up smoothly, moving away from the screen. "Your choice is: hand over Kirstin Black, Jack Kline, and Ryder Herondale, or watch the Earth burns, starting with your darling city. Take it away, Media. I hope you make the right choice." The Tv goes dead, changing to a kids cartoon.

It was quiet for a long time, all of us watching the Tv in shock. Lorna is the first one to speak, "He really wants you guys, huh? Resorting to  _that_? I didn't think he would ever do that. I mean, he wants people to like him-"

"He wants people to  _worship_ him, and he's just tried to take the Avengers out of play. The media says hand us over, and they don't? Chaos. They do hand us over? Heartless monsters who hand over their own family. The media says they don't hand us over, and we fight him? We have no way to win, stabbing him doesn't kill him, breaking his neck won't work... no weapons make him so much as flinch." I spin around while talking, tugging on the end of my hair.

"Now would be a good time to get back to the base... bring any strategizers, anybody on your team you see fit to be there, actually. We need to figure out what to do. And fast." Wanda interrupts before the conversation could continue. Pietro and her stand up, Ryder and Jack the following suit. Jack moves over to me, tugging me along as I trail behind numbly.  _This isn't going to end well._

#

 _Highway to Hell_  blasts through the labs' speakers as I work quickly on the blue suit, finishing up the final touches. I hear footsteps coming from the other room, but decide that ignoring them is the best course of action. "Kirstin." Tony's voice is muffled by the music, the footsteps still coming through over them both. "We need to talk strategy, not Ac/Dc."

" _I'm on the highway to hell... and I'm going... down!!"_ I finish off under my breath, ignoring the rest of the lyrics as I pull away from Avery's suit. Wiping grease off my hands, I turn to face him. He was putting Apollo and Artemis in the play pin. "And here I thought we were letting the media decide." Snatching the tablet off of the desk, I begin reading. "Nearly all of these are telling you to hand us over. A fight would destroy the city, level it. Not to mention, even if we get the city cleared out, we don't have a way to stop him. At least, nothing that we know for sure will work..." I trail off, listening to the others shuffle in. I feel a warm presence in my mind, almost rippling through it.

"But you have an idea on how. That's a start." The posh British accent adds. I turn to find all the people of the Compound, Charles, Erik, the Mutant Underground team, and some unrecognizable men and women. Steve, Nat, and Bucky move through the group, Steve carefully leaning against my desk, Bucky standing next to him, and Nat stopping at the front of the group. The last two were giving

"Let's hear it, печенье." **(Cookie.)** The redhead states boldly. Glancing around the room for a moment, I give in sighing.

Moving the suit easily, I move to the edge of my desk, pulling up a holographic layout of New York. "Alright. You asked for it." Waiting a few more minutes, pulling up the notes I took on the terrain, and the list of people from every team here I could get ahold of-  _read: hack into_ \- I send an unimpressed smile at Steve. "So, here's what I was thinking..."


	20. 19

“So, here's what I was thinking…” Pointing to the map on New York, she quickly moves the view around to highlight sections of the city. “We don’t know exactly where he’s going to hit in New York, right? But we know what he’s after. He wants to destroy the city, he’s going to go for the fastest route through it, but the one that is usually the most populated. He wants attention, and he wants death. Doing that would get him both. We should evacuate the city, in case I’m not right. Most monsters are easy to figure out, demons, ghosts, shifters, they have patterns. Even most psychopaths do, but this guy, he’s very close to unpredictable.”

“But not quite there.” Avery adds in, turning to look towards the group, “He’s going to make a show out of it, to prove to the world that the Avengers don’t care about them as much as they think, even if that isn’t true. We all know there is going to be something recording somewhere. Whether it’s people, or security cameras, of helicopters in the air, someone is going to have eyes on the battle. It’s what he  _ wants _ .”

“Attention? Why?” It was Gamora who asks, the green-skinned woman taking a step forward.

“Not attention.” Ryder corrects, “He wants people to believe that  _ he’s  _ the better option between the two choices. He wants the Media to know what’s happening because that’s what he thinks earns him support, earns their  _ favor _ by giving them all the information, handing the choice to them.”

Jack agrees softly, before turning to look at the others and pulling up a few social media screens, “The only flaw in his plan though, is that the media doesn’t agree with him. They actually are working together, a lot of New York has already evacuated  _ because _ of the warnings on social media. Not everybody was near a screen when he delivered his speech.”

“People love the Wanderess.” Laura adds, standing close to her husband “A family came forward talking about how you saved them from the battle, others about how there was no move to attack until everyone was safe. The video of your fight is everywhere. Add in the fact that they’d already cared about Kirstin and the Avengers, hell even just the Starks, they wouldn’t want them sacrificed when the family has built so many things that keep the city running. The clean energy movements, the homeless shelters you guys own, the clinics. The main uproar of the internet right now is the protests  _ against _ handing them over.”

“Not to mention the fact that they’ve seen her abilities in action. The fight in the city, the videos of her stopping criminals, or even just the news reports after the fact. They know handing her over is dangerous, even if they don’t know about the others.” Wanda adds from next to Pietro.

“The media seems to have themselves figured out, yes. He wants it to focus on him, wants the attention, he wants to rule Heaven, Hell,  _ and  _ Earth. He’s not going to destroy everything.” Kirstin steps the  _ I hope  _ from leaving her mouth. “But I was thinking. We can’t kill him, physical harm does nothing to him, and clearly, his brain is as scrambled as an egg. And even if we do kill him, what’s to stop him from regenerating in a thousand years? A hundred? Even ten? The next question would be, what to do with him if we can even stop him?”

“Send him to Apocalypse World?” Avery throws out, the question louder than intended, nearly yelling in her cousin’s ear.

“No.” Kirstin responds, touching her ear slightly, “There are still people living there. Humans who just defeated a major oppressor, we aren’t sending them another one.”

“The Dark Place.” Claire offers from the back of the room, her voice carrying easily. She was standing next to Peter, “That’s what Kaia called it, anyway. The only thing that lives there is monsters. Send him there.”

“I like it. We’d have to use you as a tether though, Claire. You up for a little mayhem?” The black haired girl smirks as she questions it, knowing the answer.

“Aren’t I always? I’ll get a hold of Rowena. And the boys. We need all the help we can get… you do realize you need to talk to the-"

“Yep. Ryder and I have that under control, Claire. So we get Magnus and Rowena to use what's left of Lucifer's grace. We don't need it open for long. In fact, the shorter the better. Get it open, get him in, get it closed. Now getting him in…”

“The Power Move.” Jack and Ryder say at the same time as Logan says, “How about a blast?” Logan turns to look at the Summers brothers.

“You named that damn thing?” Kirstin yelps, spinning to look at the two Nephilim.

“What's the… Power Move?” A lanky man with glasses questions from next to a blonde man asks. Hank Mccoy.

“Its when we all put our powers together collectively- It blew up nearly half of the Wakandan woods, and we have no control over the blast, guys. No. Absolutely not.”

“We have a place where you can train to control it. Fine tune it. Do you think you could do that in a week?” Alex Summers offers.

“I don't- Kirstin begins, but the boys cut her off. “Yes.” “Of course.”

“Guys!” She yelps, turning to face him. “This guy is nearly invincible! I doubt  _ that _ would take him out!”

“Thanos was nearly invincible, Kirstin,” Ryder adds, exasperated.

“No. He wasn't, he was powerful but he wasn't invincible. That's why he would send goons to collect the Infinity Stones in the beginning. He was hard to kill but he was nowhere near invincible.” Gamora explains.

“We have to try, right?” Jack looks at the group. “We can't just… not use it.”

“What if we reinforce it?” Scott Summers steps forward. “A lot of us have powerful blasts at our disposal. We could gather some of them up, reinforce the blast, make sure it takes him out.” Kirstin nods.

“I like that. Yeah, that would be a good idea. Okay, I've officially got a plan. Here we go.”

#

_ So, as previously stated, we get the city evacuated. Contact Men of Letters, get them on that. _

Jack and Natasha stand in the middle of the War Room, explaining the situation to the higher-ups that once belonged to S.H.I.E.L.D., and the original runners of the Men of Letters.

“We need New York evacuated within five days, and we can’t do that without government approval, even with our status and the threat.” Nat finished, turning to look at Phil Coulson, Maria Hill, Bobby Singer, and the Winchester brothers. “And we need as many soldiers as your willing to spare. We wouldn’t ask if we didn’t know how deadly he was.”

Maria turns to Coulson, “I want your team on this.”

“As much as I want to say yes, that isn’t just  _ our  _ call anymore, Maria. They have a choice if they want to help too. I doubt they’ll say no, and I’ll bring any field Agents I can.” They turned to look at Bobby, the question clear in their eyes.

“Already went through one Earth’s destruction, I ain’t about to let another one happen. Did you really expect me to say no, you idjits? We’ll go government this time, like you suggested, clear everyone out and to safety. I’ll have any trained soldiers interested in helping sent out as soon as possible, to correspond with your Hero gang.”

Jack’s serious facade breaks into a momentary goofy grin, before turning to Agent Coulson. “I was, uh, told by Tony to ask you to bring something called a…” he glances at the writing on his palm, “FitzSimmons? He said you’d know what that means? He also told me to say ASAP… so… ASAP?” His confused expression earned a chuckle out of Maria.

“Yeah, kid. I’m sure they’ll be delighted by the request, isn’t that right Coulson?” She turns to him, a smile on his face as he rubs his forehead, nodding briskly.

The three leaders of the Men of Letters exit quickly, leaving a confused Jack, and a texting Nat. Jack quietly whispers under his breath, turning to look at his only ‘aunt’. “They?” Natasha just shakes her head, linking arms with the Nephilim before teleporting back to their base.

_ Next step, getting Rowena to agree to help us. _

Claire taps her foot impatiently while Peter knocks on the door. It was downtown Brooklyn, meaning that either Dean and Sam wanted her far away from the Bunker, or relatively close by to the Compound. Probably both. The redheaded witch swings the door open, a sinister smile on her lips. “Well hello there, sir. What is a handsome young lad like yourself doing on my door-” It’s then that she catches Claire’s piercing blue eyes. “Oh. Well, if looks could kill I’d be dead many times over by now. I see the Winchesters sent you? I’m assuming it has to do with the lovely broadcast from the other night, no?”

“Actually it was Kirstin who sent us, so...” That earned Peter an elbow to the rib.

“Not the point. Get whatever you need for a weeks stay somewhere, and to open a Riff. We need your help.”

A new type of smile appears on her face, “Wonderful.”

_ After that, Ryder and I will talk to the Shadowhunters and Magnus. _

“I doubt this is a good idea. I know that your family forgives me and everything, but I haven’t talked to any of the Blackthorns since that night with Ty. This is a  _ really  _ bad idea.” They had already talked to Ryder’s parents, which he knew meant that the word would spread to anyone they considered worthy of the information. His girl, however, did not know that, and that left Ryder with a perfect opportunity to get her to meet Julian for the first time.

“I could always introduce you as my girlfriend instead of their cousin. I don’t know if Ty would go along though.”

“Are we?” The black haired girl blurts randomly. Ryder chuckles.

“Talking to the Blackthorns? Yes.” The question went straight over his head, she realized. Absolutely no idea what she meant. Of course, being the coward that she is, she was totally going to take them out.

Ryder winces at his response, realizing the sarcasm fell flat and sounded like he didn’t understand the question. Instead of correcting himself, however, he decided to let the diversion play out. She deserves someone who’s brain isn’t fucked ten ways to hell.

“Right. Shoot me. Let’s do this.” She steps into the room before she can change her mind.

_ Training. _

Kirstin easily puts her foot on Julian’s chest, breathing heavy, but no sweat in sight. Julian however, you could clearly see the sweat on his forehead. “I win.” He was on his back on the mat, Kirstin’s smile making him groan.

“Emma and I have been called the best Shadowhunters of this generation, yet I haven’t won a single round. Makes me think they need to reevaluate that title.” He huffs slightly, standing up with ease.

“You’re actually really good. Great, even. I just have some rather unfair advantages, in this case. I’m small, so I’m light on my feet and can easily evade a hit, but I can probably lift a city bus full of people if I tried… maybe more. Most men are strong, but their bulky muscles slow them down. I also have twice the Angelic physiology of any fully Runed Shadowhunter. So really, with how many times you’ve almost beaten me, by yourself, is incredible. With your parabatai? You guys could probably be able to take out two of me, especially if you’re actually trying to do, you know,  _ real _ damage.”

They move to the side of the gym for a moment, Kirstin letting her cousin have a breather. They’d been training for the past three hours, after Tony had kicked her out of the lab, almost physically. “So… I have a question. I know you guys tend to look more into the lore side of things instead of the Shadowhunter’s index. I was wondering if you knew a way too…” Julian trails off, internally debating if he wants to bring her into the illegal fold.

“Break a parabatai bond? I mean after I realized you two were together… and found out why that wasn’t  _ allowed  _ I started theorizing, and doing a bit of research. I found a sword. Claims to have the ability to cut through  _ anything.  _ Of course, it’s lore, so you usually don’t take anything like that by its literal meaning. Dug a little deeper, I found a ritual, deep in the Warlock tide pool, which- let me just say- cost a shit ton of money. Anyway, this guy,  _ Shade _ , let me go through some of the stuff he collected from a, as he put it, ‘psychotic warlock’s cave’. Most of it was poems and romance novels, though I eventually found what I was looking for. A ritual, that involves this blade. I wrote it down. We can get it when we’re done here. I’d like to go a few more rounds with an actual person before I’m summoned… by Thor. That’s going to suck.”

Julian laughs softly, mulling over the information for a moment, “Especially with that sadistic raccoon, Rocket, whispering in his ear. You’re screwed.” He gets back into fighting position and they begin.

_ Lots of training. _

Kirstin let’s out a groan falling onto the floor with a huff. The dummies they were training with had more scorch marks than they could count, the slightly red-streaked ‘Power Move’ having been used multiple times in the Danger Room. They’d moved from all three being destroyed, to two, to one and a half. All within two long,  _ exhausting _ training sessions. They’d finally did it, on their third, and hopefully final, session.

“One extra charred psychopath coming right up.” Ryder jokes cheerily, falling next to the girl’s right side with a thump, Jack, joining them on her other side, though not nearly as close as Ryder was to Kirstin.

“Yay,” Kirstin says softly, holding her hand in the air. Ryder plays with the end of Kirstin’s hair. He makes a confused noise, tugging at the end of her hair. “Ow! What the hell dude?”

Ryder ignores her, trying to tug the white stuff out of her hair. He continues to tug for a moment but realizes that it isn’t something  _ in  _ her, it  _ is  _ her hair. “Huh.”

“Huh. That’s odd.” He mutters to himself before standing up. “Come on. One more time for good luck.” That earned a groan out of them, though they take his hand when he pulls them up.

_ # _

Ryder peaks over the edge of the staircase, watching as Kirstin and Tony argue over the Iron Maiden suit. They were technically done but wanted to check their progress again, just so nothing goes wrong. Rhodes catches the blonde boys eyes, shaking his head in-joke annoyance. That earned a chuckle from him and keeps a smile on his face well into his training with Quill and Gamora.

_ Gathering the Super-friends. _

Kirstin lets out a yelp, turning to face Tony, “Who died my hair?” She was standing in front of a mirror in the lab. Her black hair now had blonde streaks, only on her right side.

“No clue, but it looks good, I guess. Can we get to why I called you down here? YOu’re the last one I got ahold of, and I doubt Thing One and Thing Two could tone it down for long. “ She stares at her reflection, huffing lightly.

“Who are Thing One and Thing Two?” Tony leads her to the case of suits. She catches the thoughts easily, “Ryder and Jack? Okay, now I’m scared… Oh! While I’m here, I was wondering if you’ve finished up the bo-staff for Jack?”

“Yes, I have. I already gave it to him, actually. So he can train with it.” He walks over to a section of covered with a wall blocking it. He moves it out of the way, revealing three suits, two of which are red hoods, with different types of lacing that were clear indicators who they were made for.

“This is… ours? Jack and I’s I mean.” Kirstin runs her hands over the laced up middle, letting her other hand slightly trail over Jack’s “Same type of materials?”

“I was planning on making your’s black and white again, but it came to my attention that blood was a pain in the ass to remove from white garments, so I scrapped that idea. But that’s not what I want you to think about right now, I want your opinion on Ryder’s.” Tony grabs a black disk from the table, handing it to me. “I loosely based it around Quill’s mask, how it can be put on with a tap of the button. Try it out, the other two did. Ryder likes it, Jack thought it was,  _ and I quote  _ one of the most awesome masks he’s seen. I would be offended if I hadn’t been the one to create it.” Tony explains, placing the pad behind her ear, covering it with her hair. He makes a quick _ ‘get on with it’  _ gesture while he walks toward his desk pulling up the schematics.

“You don’t want the praise though, you want results.”

He points at me, “That’s why you’re my favorite Lab Rat. You know how I think. Ryder says that the left side seemed to glitch slightly, flickering in and out, and I can’t fix it. I’m working on Avery’s suit and decided to leave this up to you. You think you got it?”

Kirstin nods, “Yeah. I’ve fixed Sam’s screen when it’s done that before, it’s usually the wiring, except the nanotech prevents that. Maybe the power isn’t traveling far enough. How small is the power source?”

#

“Ant-man, Wanderess, and SpiderMan enter a bar. That sounds like the beginning of a bad joke.” Claire mutters from in between Peter and Kirstin.

“Yeah, well, DP is the type of guy to wallow in alcohol when he’s in pain, and he just lost his… kid-person. Well, lost is a strong word. He just spent over a year always having someone with him, and now Russel is with the X-Men, and he’s alone again. This is where he’s at.” Kirstin explains.

“Plus,” Peter adds, “we asked Dopinder. His taxi driver friend. Dropped him off here an hour ago.”

Sure enough, as the four entered,- two of which who are too young to be here- Wade’s voice could be heard. Kirstin rubs her hands together, eager to see the older man, considering he was a close friend. “This is gonna be killer.”

_ We'll have the non-essential fighters going after the Hydra army, everyone else is the Jonathan attack force. _

The leaders of each group were meeting in the conference room, discussing the plan. Two people wait anxiously nearby; Kirstin Black and Helen Blackthorn. Kirstin sits with her feet tangled around the legs of her chair, tapping the end of the seat nervously.

“I like your hair.” The blonde woman next to her says randomly. “Do you die it, or…”

Kirstin runs her fingers through her hair, the right side almost completely blonde under a layer of black hair. “Oh, uh, thanks. I actually don’t know how it’s doing that, but it’s happening so… I guess I should just tell people I dye it, don’t you think?”

“Yeah.” The Shadowhunter laughs, scratching her wrist slightly. While she scratches, the Rune hidden by the shirt is revealed, “that’s probably for the best.”

“Your eyes.” Kirstin blurts out, the nervous energy in the room nearly doubled by her ability. “I… like your eyes. Sorry, I’m just really nervous. I know all of them agreed to help, but I was literally just winging it when I came up with this plan. They could either think it was shit, and create a new one all together, or add to it. If anything is thrown off by a millisecond, everything could go wrong so-” The door opens, revealing Bruce.

“Kirstin. Quick question. How exactly do you plan on blasting him into the portal, exactly?” She enters the room behind Bruce when he nods to enter, trying to read everybody she could while focusing on the topic at hand.

“Well, I’ve learned to manipulate the Mirror Dimension, yeah? That’s how I can open little pockets in the universe. So I figured I get all of them in an area where they can shoot without harming anyone and…”


	21. 20

_ Four Days Ago… _

_ Ryder drops to the floor, the painful burning leaving his body as fast as it appeared. Gasping for breath he calls mentally for Kirstin and Jack, even though Kirstin is the only one who can hear him. He hears the footsteps before he sees her, the concerned look genuine. “Holy Shit on a shingle, are you okay?” _

_ Kirstin takes in her… takes in  _ Ryder’s _ disheveled appearance. His clothes were wrinkles, big, black traced holes covered it. He was sweaty and looked as though he was about to pass out. “I don’t know… What the hell just happened, Kirstin?” _

_ Present Day _

Kirstin walks briskly, standing tall as she strides towards the blonde man, her cousin, and Ryder by her side. Her hood blocking her face and her arms in the sky, she has to hold back a wicked smirk. She had to admit, this plan was definitely worth all the training, just like taking down Jonathan was worth everything it took to get here; if it worked out as hoped. Everybody was in their places, waiting for their cue.

Ryder runs through how many Hydra soldiers are standing beside his uncle, on the ground, using Will- his new personal A. I.- to scan the inside of the nearby plane, before reporting back to Kirstin, who would report it back to Mason and the Quinjet crew. They had a MedBay set and ready in the jet, Mason, and Bruce running it with FitzSimmons, who turned out to be a couple consisting of two scientific geniuses, Alex Jones, and Patience Turner. Rowena, Magnus, and Claire were the only people in front of him that weren’t a threat, so he knew where not to aim.

Jack has to force his sweaty palms to stay in the air, waiting to reach for his gun or his blades. Knowing they were there was comforting, but he felt a need to grab it nonetheless. He was out in the open, they had to be for the plan to work. It took everything in him to keep his head down so as not to be caught reaching out with his abilities. He was searching for other angelic beings in the area that he didn’t recognize.

“Show yourselves. I want proof that you truly are my rebellious royal trio, and that you’ve been handed over with no harm.  _ Physical  _ harm.” Jonathan watches them, completely black orbs tracking their every twitch and moving his blonde-borderline white hair out of his face.

Ryder is the first to react, tapping behind his ear, his mask detracting from around his head and in front of his face, revealing the perfectly unharmed Herondale. Kirstin goes next carefully pulling back her hood. Her multicolored hair was pulled up into a braid, carefully draped over her right shoulder, no harm (or mask) anywhere in sight.  _ No point considering New York is empty. And everyone knows who she is anyway. _

Finally, it was Jack’s turn. There was an eerie silence as he rushes to finish is scan and reports it back to Kirstin. His eyes flash back to blue just as Jonathan made his impatience clear. He tugs his hood off, the red fabric coming off easily at the harsh action. An unharmed, blue-eyed twenty-year-old glares daggers into Jonathan.  _ If looks could kill… this battle would end instantaneously, and Jonathan would be dead three times over. _

“Good.” Glancing around, he steps down from the ramp of the plane behind him. He lets out an amused laugh, “It hurts, doesn’t it? How easily the family can throw you to the wolves, leave you to die? Maybe even a fate worse than death.” He examines the Nephilim, his eyes taking over Ryder and Kirstin the longest.

“You know the saying.” Ryder retorts, his voice tight. That earns a chuckle out of the older man.

“I see that you have your parent’s quick wit.” Jonathan places a hand on the Herondale boy’s shoulders, causing Ryder’s jaw to clench.

“Or maybe you're just a little out of touch. A lot of things change over the course of nearly two decades.” Jonathan laughs at that, this one sounds as though it came from a mad-man. He turns to Kirstin, who stares blankly ahead, conversing with Erik and Mason silently.

_Erik, any weapons on him? Mase, do you see anyone near the Quinjet?_ _There are two knives on him. No guns, as far as I can tell. He came relatively unprepared._ **_He’s virtually indestructible, and has an army with… one hundred and three Nephilim super soldiers, two hundred regular soldiers, and forty-five mutants._** _How did you figure that out?_ _Jack used his abilities to scan the general vicinity for Nephilim-powered Soldiers, Ryder counted how many soldiers there were, and-_ ** _We used some cool tech Tony made to track the non-friendly mutants on the battlefield by their X-gene._** _Don’t worry. Strictly Avengers tech only, no government or Mutant bashing bastards will get a hold of it._ ** _What she said._** _I_ _t is very hard to concentrate with both of you in my head._ _Technically, only I am in your head, and Mason can only talk to you because our brains have become permanently connected after he brought me back from the brink of death._ Kirstin has to hold back a snort at the wave of annoyance and confusion is shot her way. Her amusement is quickly cut short when Jonathan turns to her.

“He’s smart too. I see why you like him.” Kirstin doesn’t respond, feeling out into the Mirror Dimension carefully, searching for the person she needed to pull out, pulling the illusion up at the same time. “No response?” He pauses, examining the girl. Jonathan runs his hand over her cheek, playing with one of the last black streaks of hair on the right side of her hair. “Of course not. You were the closest to all of them. It hurts you the most. They betray you, not once, but twice? The Civil War, leaving you to deal with the loss without them. And now, now they just hand you over to me without a second thought. I’m going to treat you better, make you royalty. You live happily by my side, everybody who once treated you cruelly will bow to you. All of you. You’ll love it, you’ll see.”

“No, we won’t.” Kirstin snaps, shoving his hand away in anger. Though she was furious, she was forcing it down, only using pure acting skills to make him lose it. She covers the opening behind her with her abilities, keeping the illusion up as the two vanish, being replaced by some friends “We won’t love it, we won’t love you. We don’t want royalty, Jonathan. We want peace. Did you really think that just because we’re being handed over to you, that’d we’d willingly join you?” She shoves him back, pausing momentarily to finish the switch, jumping into the portal and letting part of the illusion to drop as it closes.

It was surreal, watching yourself, or someone that looks like you, say what you were thinking. “You’re a monster. You’re a monster, and we will never rule beside you.”

“We’re all monsters! All of us! Do you honestly believe that they will treat you like your human? Look at how they treat mutants! Do you have any idea how many mutants end up dead because they’re different? They  _ killed  _ me because I was different!” Jonathan screams in her face while the woman standing there continues unflinchingly.

“They  _ killed  _ you because you’re a psychopath, Jonathan.” He moves to grab her head, but “Jack” stops him. The real Kirstin hits real-Jack’s arm, who was watching the scene unfold.

“Come on. We have to get the others.” Jack doesn’t move, watching as “Jack” pretends to agree with Jonathan to get closer to him. Kirstin realizes why he’s still watching. She turns the slightly taller man to face her, “You know none of us actually believe you could do that. He doesn’t, and he’s wrong. We have to go, otherwise, our friends out there will get  _ hurt. _ ” With a final tug at his arm, Jack turns away from the scene, the three of them running back towards the Quinjet to collect the rest of the Blast Squad.

Claire takes a deep breath, watching Magnus and Rowena grab the bags full of magical ingredients. Yes, fighting werewolves are a lot different than a full-out army, but that was only half of the nerve build-up. There were so many people here that she cared for, nearly all of them would be in direct line of fire. The last time she had worked with someone, they didn’t make it back. A hand rests lightly on her shoulder.

Charles’ attempt at comfort earned him a dark glare from the young girl in the leather jacket. “Your friends are perfectly capable of taking care of themselves.”

“Yeah, I know that. Never said they didn’t.” She grabs one of the bags of ingredients. “It doesn’t matter. We need to get set up without them noticing. Better get your mind Vudu ready.” Hoisting up a duffel full of weapons, Claire begins to follow the others out, Charles close behind. They carefully maneuver around the enemy army, Charles, Emma, and Jean keeping them from seeing the group.

Kirstin feels a sinking feeling in her gut, even as she triple checks the plan in her mind, looking for any flaws. “Something feels off.” Ryder looks over at her.

“Everything feels off Kirstin. I mean, we’re here, but we aren’t, they’re about to send out a blast that is extremely harmful to people like us, and there is a  _ literal wizard  _ on our side.” Without thinking Kirstin laughs, stepping around the Quinjet to get to the group of people ready for the actual battle.

“You grew up around Warlocks and  _ wizards  _ impress you? You have low standards.” Without thinking she mutters under her breath, “Clearly, look who you're trying to get with.”

“Excuse me?” He questions incredulously. Ignoring him, she greets the fighters with a simple nod, letting her eyes flutter closed for a few seconds.

Scanning Claire’s mind, she finds that they were set up and ready for them. “We’re good to go. Strange, get everyone where they need to go. Captain-” With a simple gesture from his niece, the man in question takes over

“All right we need flyers coming in from behind the enemy, to take them by surprise. Everybody not taking on Jonathan or flying will be split into three groups. Group A will come from the left, group B from the right, and Group c will be set up with Charles and the others, making sure nobody catches them off, guard. Kirstin-” She nods, a momentary shimmer appears around her as she disappears into the Quinjet, helping Mason set up the weapon they built to confuse and disorient a Nephilim-blooded person. One blast is supposed to keep them disoriented for five minutes if it worked.  _ God, I hope it works _ Ryder thinks to himself, standing next to Jack while they wait for her. Everyone else was already on the move getting into position so all Strange has to do is open a dimensional barrier between the Mirror Dimension and our dimension.

Jack watches Ryder for a moment, examining him. The other boy notices, glancing back toward the ship. After a moment of continuous staring, the Herondale sighs in defeat, “See something you like, Jack? Because I’m flattered, but I’m pretty sure you’ve noticed the… thing going on between Kirstin and me.”

“Why can’t you guys just say you’re together? Kirstin’s the mind reader, yet  _ I’m  _ the one that can tell what you’re both thinking. Guess that just makes me awesome, huh?” Was Jack’s attempt at easing the tension around them. The normally loud city being this quiet was in itself unnerving, throw in a maniac that wants to rule the world, friends in danger, and a new mix of abilities, and this place is just a downright horror show.

“Yeah?” The youngest nods, “What are we thinking?”

“Well, Kirstin feels guilty that coming to you after she got out ended with you being taken. And you… think you’re too…” Jack trailed off, trying to find a way to finish the sentence that doesn’t sound bad.

“Broken?” Ryder offers quietly, his voice meek as he stares into space for a moment. Glancing over to the man in red, he sends a shaky smile, “You can say it. It won’t kill me, or you.”

“I was going to say scarred… but Ryder, I don’t know if you noticed, but everybody you know is a little scared, even Kirstin. Dean, Cas, and Sam have been beaten, kidnapped, killed, possessed by angels, apparently, Dean was a demon for a while, and have been tormented by  _ my father _ for years. Avery has issues looking in the mirror because she saw what happened when the boys were working a case on Bloody Mary.  _ My father _ is  _ freaking Lucifer _ , and he tried to kill me and everyone I love. Kirstin… she and Avery saw their uncles die a lot growing up… they lived through all the bad things that their uncles faced. Just… sort this out. Or I’ll sick Mason and Andi on you. Their very protective of her.” With a nod, and a long pause he turns back to him, “Now, let’s go stop your unkillable uncle.”

“Lets.”

#

Kirstin jumps back into the Mirror Dimension seconds before the blast rings through the city. Grabbing the two blonde boys’ arms, she teleports to the rest of the group, never releasing her death grip. She spins around to face the opposing army, watching as the fake Nephilim attack a momentarily stunned Jonathan. Ryder’s eyes widen, hitting the other two’s arms.  _ He’s got angel blood too! _

Jack quickly grabs Kirstin’s hand, Ryder the following suit. The others (Which included; Scott Summers,- who can shoot lasers out of his eyes- Alex Summers,- Scott’s older brother, who can shoot lasers out of his chest and hands- Storm, -who can control the weather and shoot lightning- Marcos, -who can apparently shoot light out of hands- Jubilee, -who controls firework-like blasts- and a guy named Pyro. He can shoot fire out of his hands if he has a lighter on him or some other form of fire nearby.) gather around carefully, letting their blasts build up for a moment.

Kirstin, Jack, and Ryder all feel a familiar pain flair through them, using the Heavenly Fire in their systems to their advantage. Sending as much of the fire as they could feel in their combined capabilities. The others gathered around, directing their blasts towards the man.

Domino- “Jack”- grabs Mystique- “Kirstin”- jumping at of the way with the metamorph tangled in her arms. Deadpool, who’s “Ryder” facade was dropped, ducked out of the way at the last second, but not before getting in one final attack. Slicing his blade straight across the man’s chest as he went, he ran out of the way, jumping and letting Spiderman web him, pulling him out of the way of the blast.

On the other end of the fight, Claire was anxiously tapping her hand, watching as Magnus and Rowena summon the portal in front of her eyes. “This won’t last very long, so I hope that blast is effecti-” Before the Scottish woman could finish, a blast of light could be seen headed directly towards the man they were hiding behind.

#

The portal closed slowly, the blast slowly fading from the air. Gone from his place in front of them, Jonathan Morgenstern was defeated in the final attempt. Kirstin smiled the brightest anyone had seen in a long time, turning to Ryder with wide eyes. “We did it!”

There was a chorus of agreements from around the setup, as the other teams quickly moved in, working on the scattered army that Jonathan left in his wake. Ryder looks away from the bright-eyed girl, towards the battle, and back to her, “Yeah. We did.” He pauses for a second, pulling his blade out. “But we’re not done here yet.” With that and a smirk from Kirstin, the three of them ran off to join the battle, the group behind them quick to join.


End file.
